If Tottenham Hotspur head coach Igor Tudor did not know the size of the task at hand to keep the club in the Premier League, he does now.
The Croatian manager has lost his first two games in charge of the club, to Arsenal and Fulham, and the Lilywhites are four points above West Ham United in the last relegation spot.
After the game, Tudor claimed that Raul Jimenez “cheated” when his hand on Radu Dragusin’s back was not called for a foul in the build-up to the opening goal from Harry Wilson, as he believed that it was a foul and not a play for the ball.
The frustration possibly comes from the Randal Kolo Muani goal that was disallowed against Arsenal because of a shove on Gabriel, although there was more contact in that incident.
Irrespective of whether or not it was the right decision to allow Wilson’s goal to stand, Spurs had a lot of problems in their defeat to Fulham that had nothing to do with the officiating.
What went wrong for Spurs vs Fulham
Even if you took Wilson’s goal, which had an xG value of 0.25, Fulham had a higher xG than Spurs, with 1.89 to their 0.88, and 2.14 with the Welshman’s goal included.
Stat
Fulham
Spurs
Possession
54%
46%
Shots
18
13
Shots inside the box
15
10
Shots on target
4
1
Big chances
3
1
xG
2.14
0.88
Spurs, despite the volume of defensive-minded players on the pitch, were wide open defensively far too often and Fulham did not make the most of the chances that they created.
Emile Smith Rowe, in particular, wasted several good opportunities to find the back of the net, which meant that the final result was closer than it should have been for the hosts.
Whilst you could contend that the first goal should have been disallowed, Spurs should focus their energy on improving the defensive faults in their side, which have come from several seasons of poor recruitment work.
The Lilywhites have, to put it simply, made too many underwhelming signings and now have a squad littered with players who, on current evidence, do not look like they belong at a top six club, which is why Tottenham should be.
Spurs flop looks like their worst signing since Tanguy Ndombele
It is hard to look past Tanguy Ndombele as the club’s worst ever signing. He was bought for a then-club-record fee of £62.8m in 2019 and scored ten goals in just 91 matches in five seasons before being sent to Nice on a free transfer in 2024.Spurs may have just made their worst signing since they bought the French central midfielder with a £34m deal to bring Conor Gallagher to the club in the January transfer window.
A £34m fee puts him 13th in the club’s all-time most expensive signings, but the England international is reportedly the highest-paid player at the club on £200k-per-week, which means that the deal is more expensive than the transfer fee suggests.
Given both the fee and the wages reportedly being paid, Gallagher already looks like the club’s worst signing since Ndombele based on his first seven Premier League starts for the club.
An assist in the 2-2 draw with Manchester City is the only real moment of quality that he has produced in his second stint in the English top-flight, having come through the ranks at Chelsea, and he struggled badly against Fulham.
Vs Fulham
Conor Gallagher
Minutes
58
Pass accuracy
74%
Touches
37
Shots
0
Chances created
0
Dribbles
0
Duels won
1/4
Tackles
0
Playing as a wide midfielder on the right, Gallagher had even fewer touches than his goalkeeper, Guglielmo Vicario (43), which speaks to his lack of involvement in the game.
The English flop failed to register any shots, chances created, dribbles, or tackles, whilst losing 80% of his duels, as he coupled ineffective play in possession with a lack of physicality off the ball.
In his seven league starts for the club, Gallagher has not created a single ‘big chance’ for his teammates, has not scored a goal, and has lost 55% of his duels. On top of that, the £200k-per-week midfielder has been dribbled past nine times and no player in the squad has been dribbled past more per game than him in the league.
What makes this signing particularly underwhelming is that his issues in his first seven games for Spurs are the same ones that convinced Atletico Madrid to part ways with him in January.
In 19 LaLiga appearances in the first half of the season, Gallagher lost 59% of his duels and only created one ‘big chance’ for Diego Simeone’s side.
Therefore, given that he is reportedly earning more than the likes of Richarlison and Solanke, the former Chelsea starlet may be the club’s worst signing since Ndombele because of how poor his performances have been, and how predictable they have been after his struggles in Spain.
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Hopefully, Gallagher can turn his form around and prove people wrong to make himself a key player for Tottenham. On current evidence, he looks set to go down as a flop for the money spent.