Atletico v Tottenham live: Igor Tudor’s side bid to rescue disastrous season in Champions League | OneFootball

Tottenham will bid to bounce back in the Champions League (Getty)

Tottenham Hotspur will bid to arrest their remarkable collapse in form with a trip to Atletico in the Champions League.

Igor Tudor’s side may be facing the ignominy of a relegation battle but so far they have performed significantly better than expected in Europe, as they did last season under Ange Postecoglou, winning the Europa League even as they finished 17th domestically.

Now in the Champions League, they finished fourth in the league phase to progress automatically to the last 16, and now take on Diego Simeone’s Atletico in the first leg of their last-16 tie.

And after a run of five straight defeats in all tournaments and 11 top-flight games without a win, with Tudor winless in his tenure so far, Tottenham will be desperate to turn things around.

Match stats

Atletico have progressed from two of their three previous Champions League last 16 ties against English clubs, beating Liverpool in 2019/20 and Manchester United in 2021/22, while losing the other to Chelsea in 2020/21.

However, Tottenham have only lost one of their last five Champions League meetings with Spanish opponents (a 2-4 home defeat to Barcelona in the 2018/19 group stage).

Chris Wilson10 March 2026 19:47

The Champions League has eroded the soul of European football – here’s how to fix it

When the draw for the Champions League last 16 was made, there were at least a few Uefa figures who winced. That was because they were anticipating reactions like that of Pep Guardiola, who rightly said it was “a little bit weird” that Manchester City and Real Madrid were facing each other for the fifth consecutive season and sixth occasion in seven years. Some in Uefa counter that comes from the clear logic of the new seeding system, that the clubs voted for.

But what else is likely to happen when it’s mostly the same teams all the time? And now, increasingly, when it’s teams from the same country all the time?

England has six clubs in the Champions League last 16, which is obviously unprecedented. High-level Uefa sources would privately admit such a situation - from any country - is also undesirable. The greater issue is that the very structuring of European football makes it more likely to happen, not less.

The Champions League has eroded the soul of European football – here’s how to fix it

The powers that be at the Champions League have placed an emphasis on revenue growth above all else, argues Miguel Delaney, but in doing so have lost sight of the magic of the competition and what it represents

‘A good clear out is needed’: Fans fume as Tottenham Hotspur flirts with relegation

Our community is united in frustration as Igor Tudor’s tactics fail to arrest Tottenham’s slide, leaving fans fearing relegation and demanding urgent change...

Tottenham Hotspur fans are at their wits’ end after a disastrous run has left the club flirting with relegation.

Supporters described a squad lacking effort, spirit, and direction. They said they were frustrated by constant underperformance despite recent attempts to strengthen in the summer and January transfer windows.

Many argued the crisis runs far deeper than the players on the pitch. Fans pointed the finger at former chairman Daniel Levy, the Lewis Family Trust, and the board, criticising poor decisions on managers — from sacking Ange Postecoglou after he won the Europa League last season to replacing him with Thomas Frank, whose 34.2 per cent win rate is the lowest for a permanent manager in the club’s modern history.

Chris Wilson10 March 2026 19:25