The pressure of a North London derby is usually enough to make even the most seasoned managers lose sleep, but for Igor Tudor, the stakes have been dialed up to an almost impossible level.
Stepping into the Tottenham Hotspur dugout as an interim manager is a challenge in itself, but doing so while the club is teetering just five points above the relegation zone is a true test of character.
With the shadow of a disastrous season looming large, the Croatian coach decided to steer away from the tactical whiteboards for a moment on Thursday evening, opting instead for a more human approach to his first week on the job.
In what many would call an unorthodox move, Tudor took his entire squad out for a team-bonding dinner, hoping to mend a dressing room that has been described as fractured and demoralized.
The choice of venue was as interesting as the timing. Tudor led his players to Ousia, a well-regarded Greek-Cypriot restaurant nestled in Muswell Hill. While the move was likely intended to simply get the players away from the high-pressure environment of the training ground, fans couldn’t help but notice the subtle, perhaps unintentional, nod to former manager Ange Postecoglou.
By choosing a Mediterranean feast, Tudor seemed to be trying to inject a bit of that old warmth back into a club that has felt cold and corporate during its recent slide down the table. As the players sat down to share dishes like chicken souvlaki and beef moussaka, the goal was clear: unity.
A team photo taken after the meal showed a group of players with genuine smiles on their faces, a sight that has been rare in North London lately. For months, the mood around the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium has been darkening.
The departure of Thomas Frank was the culmination of a period defined by dismal results and a strange internal obsession with their rivals. Reports suggest that Frank had lost the dressing room not just because of the losses including a recent hammering by Newcastle but because of his constant comparisons to Arsenal.
It is said that Frank would frequently praise the Gunners in front of his own players, even using them as a benchmark for how he wanted his team to play. For a squad already struggling with confidence, being told how impressive their biggest rivals were proved to be the final straw.
Tudor has arrived with a very different energy. He is under no illusions about the gravity of the situation. In his opening interview, he spoke with the bluntness of a man who knows there is no time for sugar-coating. He acknowledged that the current league position is unacceptable for a club of Tottenham’s stature and that every player needs to find something “extra” within themselves to turn the tide.
He isn’t interested in excuses or comparisons; he is interested in courage and concrete results on the pitch. His first task is a daunting one: hosting the league leaders, Arsenal, in a match that could either spark a miraculous survival bid or push the club further toward the unthinkable reality of relegation.
The tactical side of things is complicated by a staggering injury list that has left the squad looking like a shadow of its former self. Tudor has been open about the fact that he needs to find a system that fits the players who are actually available, rather than trying to force a pre-conceived philosophy onto a depleted group.
This “triage” approach to management is a far cry from the long-term projects usually associated with elite clubs, but Tudor knows that right now, survival is the only philosophy that matters.
The dinner in Muswell Hill served as a symbolic reset button. By gathering the players together in a social setting, Tudor was attempting to wipe away the psychological residue of the Frank era. He wants his players to stop looking at what Arsenal is doing and start focusing on who they are as a group.
The smiles in the post-dinner photograph suggest that the players are at least willing to follow his lead. However, the true test won’t be found over a plate of souvlaki; it will be found in the heat of the derby on Sunday.
Arsenal arrives as the heavy favorites, playing a brand of football that is currently the envy of the league. For Spurs to get anything out of the game, they will need more than just improved morale.
They will need a level of tactical discipline and defensive grit that has been missing for most of the campaign. Tudor’s task is to take the warmth generated at that dinner table and turn it into fire on the pitch. He needs his players to fight for each other in a way they haven’t all season.
The North London derby is rarely a quiet affair, but this edition feels particularly heavy. For the fans, seeing the players out together was a sign of hope, a small indication that the “darkening mood” might finally be lifting. Tudor has played his first card, and it was a human one.
He has challenged his players to give the club everything it needs in this moment, and he has done so by treating them like a family rather than just a collection of underperforming assets. Whether this unorthodox preparation pays off remains to be seen, but for one night in Muswell Hill, the relegation battle felt a world away.
