Igor Tudor has gone four games without a win at Tottenham.
Tottenham Hotspur’s challenging season reached a new low with a 5-2 defeat against Atletico Madrid in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 match on Tuesday evening.
Goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky, who replaced Guglielmo Vicario, slipped twice, allowing goals to Marcos Llorente and Julian Alvarez. He was substituted in the 17th minute by Igor Tudor, facing criticism for how he managed the young goalkeeper.
Micky van de Ven also slipped, leading to a goal from Antoine Griezmann. Robin le Normand scored a fourth for Atletico before Pedro Porro managed to get one back for Spurs. Julian Alvarez capped a counter-attack in the 55th minute, but Dominic Solanke’s goal narrowed the gap to three.
Paul Robinson criticizes Tottenham’s performance against Atletico Madrid
This loss means Igor Tudor has yet to win any of his four games in charge of Tottenham. He was brought in as Thomas Frank’s replacement to revitalize the team, but Spurs have instead struggled under his leadership, leading to increased tensions off the field.
Despite injury challenges, Tottenham seemed unprepared to compete against Atletico Madrid, lacking quality, organization, and tactical adjustments. Atletico did not need to push hard to score five against Spurs’ weak defense.
Former player Paul Robinson expressed his disappointment over the team’s performance. He criticized the lack of effort and suggested that the team’s attitude and application were not up to standard.
“Tottenham has a long injury list, but so do other teams. That shouldn’t be an excuse,” Paul Robinson stated on BBC Radio 5 Live.
“The minimum expectation is maximum effort, but Spurs appeared lost.”
“It’s about attitude and application, which are both missing at Tottenham.”
No chance of overcoming the deficit in the return leg
Spurs faced one of their worst European performances with the 5-2 defeat at Atletico Madrid. The season has been marred by notable individual mistakes, leading to lost points in key matches. This continued on Tuesday, as Kinsky and Van de Ven slipped at crucial moments, gifting goals to Atletico.
Overcoming a three-goal deficit against a strong Atletico team at home poses a significant challenge. The current Tottenham side lacks the quality and leadership, and it appears that Tudor’s tactics may not be enough to enable a comeback in the return leg.
After such a heavy loss, this tie looks largely decided, providing Atletico with a relatively easy path to the Champions League quarter-finals.