The atmosphere around the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium has shifted from frustration to a nervous sense of anticipation. With the threat of a historic relegation now looming over North London like a dark cloud, the club’s leadership finally decided that enough was enough.
The departure of Thomas Frank earlier this week was the inevitable conclusion to a dismal run that saw the team manage only two league victories in their last thirteen attempts. In his place steps Igor Tudor, a man known for his disciplined approach and his ability to stabilize sinking ships.
While much of the talk has centered on how the Croatian will fix a leaky defense, the real story might lie in how his tactical preferences could breathe life into the club’s most expensive and underperforming stars.
When we look back at the summer transfer window, it is easy to see where the season began to unravel. After being publicly rejected by primary targets like Morgan Gibbs-White and Eberechi Eze, Spurs eventually pivoted to Xavi Simons.
The Dutch international arrived from RB Leipzig with a massive £52 million price tag and the heavy burden of being the team’s primary creative spark. Unfortunately, the transition to the Premier League has been grueling for the 22-year-old. With a meager return of just two goals and five assists across 31 appearances, the supporters have begun to lose patience.
The underlying numbers tell an even more concerning story than the basic goal tally. Simons has looked like a passenger in many matches, ranking in the bottom 10% of all Premier League midfielders for touches in the opposition box. He is simply not getting into the dangerous areas where he can hurt opponents.
His shooting has been equally timid, averaging less than half a shot on target per game. Under Thomas Frank’s rigid system, Simons often looked shackled, unable to find the pockets of space that made him such a devastating force in the Bundesliga.
However, the arrival of Igor Tudor offers a tactical reset that could be tailor-made for the Dutchman. Tudor is a firm believer in a 3-5-2 system, a formation he used to great effect during his recent tenure at Juventus. In this setup, Tudor often employs two disciplined “sitters” in the midfield to provide defensive security, which allows a dedicated number ten the freedom to roam.
This “free role” is exactly where Simons thrived at Leipzig, where he contributed to 19 goals in a single season. By removing his defensive burdens and allowing him to operate directly behind two strikers, Tudor could finally unlock the creative outlet that Spurs paid so handsomely for.
While Simons is the big-money permanent signing under scrutiny, he is not the only high-profile player who has struggled. Randal Kolo Muani, on loan from Paris Saint-Germain, has arguably been an even greater disappointment.
Despite his pedigree as a World Cup finalist, the Frenchman has looked completely out of sorts in England, managing only three goals all season. Many critics have labeled him the worst signing of the Frank era, a title that carries significant weight given the club’s current league position.
The silver lining here is that Kolo Muani has a history with Igor Tudor. During his loan spell at Juventus last season, the striker was a man transformed under the Croatian’s guidance. He found the net every 145 minutes, a career-best statistic that highlighted his efficiency when used in a strike partnership.
Tudor knows how to utilize Kolo Muani’s pace and movement within a two-man frontline, a system that suits the Frenchman far better than the isolated role he was often forced to play under the previous management.
| Randal Kolo Muani: Key Stats Under Igor Tudor (2024/25) | Tally / Percentage |
| Total Games Played | 26 |
| Combined Goals & Assists | 12 |
| Shot on Target Accuracy | 54% |
| Goals per Shot on Target | 0.6 |
| Key Passes per 90 Minutes | 1.4 |
| Successful Take-ons per 90 | 1.5 |
| Carries into Opposition Box | 1.2 |
As the table above illustrates, Kolo Muani was a clinical and creative force when playing for Tudor in Italy. His ability to maintain a 54% shooting accuracy suggests that his current struggles in London are a matter of confidence and coaching rather than a lack of innate ability.
If Tudor can replicate the environment that allowed the Frenchman to thrive in Serie A, Tottenham might find they already have the firepower necessary to climb the table.
The next few weeks will define the future of the club. If Tudor can successfully integrate Simons into a creative “free” role and pair him with a revitalized Kolo Muani, the “Lilywhites” could quickly turn their fortunes around.
It would be a poetic twist if the two players most criticized for the club’s downfall ended up being the ones to save it. For the fans, the hope is that Tudor’s arrival is more than just a temporary fix; it is the spark needed to ignite a squad that has spent too much of the season in the shadows.
