No wins in five, then two in a row — the truth was probably always somewhere in the middle for Tottenham Hotspur. But with the lopsided loss at Forest over the weekend, it is impossible to ignore the fact that Thomas Frank’s side has just one league win in seven and could find itself in the bottom five come New Year’s, eerily familiar from the previous season it was supposed to resolve.
To close out 2025, Spurs get Liverpool at home, a club that has caused them immense trouble regardless of either
team’s form, and then a Palace side that is currently tied for fifth and just two points outside the top four. No one was expecting Tottenham to be completely fixed after the first half of the season, but there is a real chance that essentially no improvement will be shown over last year, which is a big problem.
Match Details
Date: Saturday, December 20
Time: 12:30 pm ET, 5:30 pm UK
Location: Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London
TV: NBC (US), Sky Sports Main Event (UK)
Table: Spurs (t-11th, 22 pts), Liverpool (t-5th, 26 pts)
Tottenham has one league win over Liverpool in the last seven seasons and has lost (at least) both contests in five of those campaigns. Last year was no different with the Reds doing the double, while also erasing a 1-0 deficit in the League Cup semifinals by winning convincingly at Anfield to make it 4-1 on aggregate. In four fixtures last year, Liverpool scored 15 times against Tottenham. Lol.
Three Big Questions
Is this going to be ugly? After winning five straight to open the season, Liverpool lost six of its next seven league fixtures and is 2-2-0 in the most recent four. The Reds are still fifth in goals but average in goals allowed, though their fifth-best xGA suggest a little misfortune here. While these sides are nearly equal in goal difference, no one would believe their quality is anything close, even with Liverpool’s slump.
Mohamed Salah or not, expect the visitors to find the back of the net — likely on numerous occasions. Multiple goals have been scored in three of their last four contents and this is exactly the sort of side that will punish defensive mistakes. Maybe it ends up not quite as horrific as some of the battles last season, but Hugo Ekitike, Alexander Isak, and the rest of the attackers will be looking for blood on Saturday.
Does the approach revert? Accordingly, the logical decision after the weekend and now facing a team as scary as Liverpool would be for Frank to go way more defensive, which starts in central midfield. Archie Gray has been solid overall and should not be overly penalized for one mistake, but this is one of the few times it makes sense to get hyper conservative and secure at these spots.
Additionally, this feels like another chance for the return of the back three. Against Arsenal, the results were…less than desirable, but there clearly needs to be more stability in defense and this would be one way to achieve it. Frank has also not shied away from trying out different formations, and with his support quickly dissipating, we are reaching kitchen sink time.
Where is the hope? Optimistically thinking, maybe the week-long break between Forest and Liverpool, then again between Liverpool and Palace, is exactly what this club (and manager) needs. It has been essentially two matches a week the whole season long, and it certainly takes time for the new regime to get its structure into place, especially with so many changes compared to the previous managerial staff.
However, it could get dark very quickly. A loss to Liverpool is clearly the expected outcome, and a loss away to Palace would be zero surprise. That then brings Frank and Spurs to Brentford, where the atmosphere is going to be extremely anxiety-inducing. With Tottenham potentially dead in the league at that point, one has to wonder if recovery is even an option.
