As each passing week goes by, the threat of relegation becomes more real for Tottenham. This is no longer a quirk that it can be assumed will automatically be corrected. The monster not only exists but is getting closer, and fear is beginning to set in and make itself seen in their play. Defeat on Sunday was not only far more emphatic than the scoreline might suggest, but it was their fourth reverse in a row, extending their run without a win in the Premier League to nine. The only sliver of relief was that all their relegation rivals lost as well.
But this was grim stuff from Spurs. Igor Tudor had hoped the 4-1 defeat in the north London derby would be a wake-up call. But if anything, this was even worse. Arsenal won because they are better than Tottenham; Fulham won because Spurs were terrible. Tudor, the arch-firefighter, has a huge job on his hands.
Although they were well beaten last week, it had at least been possible to discern vague glimmers of hope in their capacity to get bodies in the way, or in the aggression of Randal Kolo Muani. There was none of that here. Spurs were limp, apathetic. The 4-4-2 Tudor slightly surprisingly deployed didn’t work. Conor Gallagher had a nightmare. Xavi Simons was non‑existent. Kolo Muani kept running the ball out of play, as though surprised the pitch were not significantly bigger. All three were withdrawn just before the hour.
Fulham were more aggressive, more decisive, more coherent, better. They missed a string of good chances particularly in a spell just after half-time, slicing through Spurs with disconcerting ease. That none were taken gave Tottenham a chance, and good hold-up play from Mathys Tel led to Archie Gray crossing for Richarlison to nod in. There were still 24 minutes remaining, and the possibility of a hugely unlikely comeback suddenly presented itself. It never materialised. Fulham responded to the Spurs changes with substitutions of their own, and the flow of chances, if not quite so torrential as it had been, continued.
Tottenham are learning that when you’re up against it, everything goes against you. Decisions go the other way, and opposing players develop an infuriating habit of doing extraordinary things. Or perhaps it’s simply that if a side, through ineptitude or laxity, provides the opportunity for misfortune to happen, it will. For all that Spurs could feel aggrieved at the refereeing for the first goal and the fates for the second – when did Alex Iwobi last score a goal that good? – in both cases they bore significant responsibility for not shutting down the attacks earlier in the move.
Last week, a slight push from Kolo Muani on Gabriel led to what would have been a second equaliser being ruled out. On Sunday, Raúl Jiménez was not penalised for a slight push on Radu Dragusin in the buildup to Harry Wilson’s volleyed opener. In both cases the player nudged was in the air and so unable to set themselves. Kolo Muani’s push was one‑handed, Jiménez used two. It might just about be argued that the contact initiated by Jiménez was more part of the jumping action and Kolo Muani’s more cynical, but that is a fine judgment. The major difference was simply that against Arsenal the on-field referee gave the foul whereas here Thomas Bramall did not, and the video assistant referee in neither case saw the need to intervene.
The more Tudor and the captain, Micky van de Ven, both implored Bramall to give the push, the more apparent Spurs’ plight seemed. There was a desperation to them at times, a nervousness that led to some wild early shots and a couple of miscontrols that could only be explained by anxiety. And whatever the rights and wrongs of the decision on the push, Spurs should have defended the situation better, allowing the ball to be returned to the centre after the initial cross had evaded everybody.
The second goal was stunning, Iwobi exchanging passes with Wilson before sending a first-time side-foot finish arrowing in off the post from 25 yards. But brilliant as the strike, Iwobi might not have been so accurate had Dominic Solanke bothered to track his run. The look on Solanke’s face, the dawning realisation that there was something he should have been doing and had neglected to do so, felt an apt representation of Tottenham’s plight.
Spurs can hear the monster, smell it, feel its breath on their necks. And they will not get away from it with performances such as this.
