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Tottenham Hotspur have been on a downward trajectory for a long part of the year. Apart from their run to the final of last season's UEFA Champions League, their form has been abject with more matches lost and drawn than won.Last night's heavy home defeat at the hands of Bayern Munich in the UEFA Champions League has cast a huge shadow on the club.
Speculation about their players and manager has been rife too with the exploits of many gathering interest from the bigger clubs all across the continent. Their recent run has seen them deviating from the high-intensity brand of football they usually play. Furthermore, there is also a negative vibe around the club at the moment that isn't aiding their cause.
In contrast to the belief that Mauricio Pochettino was to guide them to a trophy this year. Here are three reasons why Spurs are in a downward spiral.
#3 Squad burnout
Looking at Tottenham's squad, it is evident that Mauricio Pochettino does not rotate his players a lot. Jan Vertonghen, Toby Alderweireld and Hugo Lloris have had a continuous run since the World Cup in 2018 ended and look burnt out after the end of last season. The same can be said about Christian Eriksen and Dele Alli.
Tottenham's star players look exhausted and demotivated and there simply isn't enough quality on the bench for Pochettino to rotate and compete at the level they currently are week-in-week out. If this trend continues, Harry Kane and Heung-Min Son, Tottenham's only reliable performers currently could be the next to succumb to fatigue and lose form.
Tottenham no longer press intensely as they used to. They are more passive without the ball and do not attack with the same vigour as they did in the beginning of the last two seasons. Their defending has also been characterized by a variety of individual errors from usually reliable players and mental and physical fatigue.
#2 Lack of investment
Tottenham splashed the cash this summer but are feeling the effects of a lack of activity in the transfer market last year. This has resulted in this season's signings taking a longer time to get used to the Premier League while the rest of Tottenham's squad has to compensate for their new teammates.
With the other players already fatigued and playing continuously, Tottenham's squad isn't far away from being stretched too thin.Tanguy N'Dombele has impressed but struggled for fitness while Giovanni Lo Celso and Ryan Sessegnon have barely featured due to injuries.
Spurs missed the chance to supplement a squad hitting its peak last summer and instead are currently in a situation where there is a mismatch of form and chemistry. Even now, Tottenham do not have sufficient depth to challenge in four major tournaments they play in and a single injury to either Kane or Son could derail their entire season.
#1 Unsettled Squad and Manager
Mauricio Pochettino has gone on record the past few weeks saying his squad lacks unity and commitment. He has admitted to the squad disharmony behind the scenes and the same can be seen on the pitch. Spurs don't look like the same side of two seasons ago when each player fought for one another.
Christian Eriksen might have stayed on in August but looks extremely likely to leave next season while Jan Vertonghen is also yet to commit his future to the club. Pochettino himself has been heavily linked to Real Madrid and there are rumours that he could take Son with him if he were to leave.
Overall, there is a great deal of uncertainty over the futures of the manager and important players which seems to be affecting Tottenham's chemistry on the pitch.
Drastic changes are needed if Tottenham are going get out of this situation. The futures of Pochettino and the star players need to be secured and if not need to be clarified to remove the uncertainty around the club. More importantly, Pochettino needs to get his players committed and excited to play football again.
