Why do Tottenham struggle with consistency?

Tottenham has invested so much money to become one of the top clubs in England for several decades now, but success has eluded them, and they haven’t been close to winning another gong since they won the 2008 League Cup.

They have been through so many managers, including some of the best names in the business like Mauricio Pochettino and Jose Mourinho, but have remained trophyless, leaving their fans to wonder if there is going to be a time when they will win yet another trophy.

The current Spurs team has the facility, the ownership, and the players, yet they are far from securing one trophy domestically or in European football, which should bother their fans.

Spurs have started seasons very well and reached the final of many competitions, but they ultimately come short.

Their performance inconsistency makes them miss out on winning trophies, and they struggle to make the Premier League’s top four almost every season.

With some of the best support in the land and an owner not afraid to spend the cash and keep their best players, why does Tottenham still struggle to win trophies?

A curse?

One of the laziest excuses flying around about their misfortune is that they could be under some spell, which has stopped them from getting over the finish line severally.

It is easy to accept this when you consider that even the best Tottenham team that reached the final of the Champions League in 2019 couldn’t win it.

For context, Liverpool also had terrible luck in finals under Jurgen Klopp, and the German is a serial loser in finals.

Fans had expected the Reds to lose again, but somehow they defeated Tottenham, which eliminated Ajax in the semi-final. The Dutchmen had been terrific throughout the competition.

Several other stories could make it seem Spurs are probably truly cursed, but that remains one of the laziest excuses in the book, and they must keep trying to win another trophy for their fans.

Mediocrity in their culture

Spurs remain one of the traditional top-six sides in England and deserve credit for breaking inside the stronghold of the top four.

They announced their arrival with some terrific performances under Harry Redknapp, and the club did well to maintain that level for a long time by appointing good managers who can keep them around the top four of the league.

However, Spurs still lack that winning culture, and their players have struggled to break the ceiling of being just a Champions League campaigner for several seasons.

Even in their best season, Spurs still have mediocrity running through them, which is one reason fans always expect them to “bottle” their campaigns in different competitions.

The 2015/2016 season is one typical instance where they were so close to winning the Premier League and competed with Leicester City in an unlikely race never seen before.

However, they still bottled it in the famous battle of the bridge against Chelsea, and this has occurred severally after that time.

Under Jose Mourinho, they proved even one of the best managers in the world could not get consistently good performances from them, a clear sign of a mediocre team.

For Spurs to overachieve by winning a trophy, they must break through mediocrity and play with the mindset of a winning club like Arsenal has done in recent months.

This cannot be achieved even under the best manager around until there is a mindset shift.

Players see them as a stepping stone

Spurs is one of the top clubs in England and has arguably the best stadium in the Premier League. They also pay good money as wages to their players, yet it is hard to see a player that considers them their final destination.

Many professionals will choose them if they haven’t played for a top club before, making it obvious they want to use the Londoners to step up in their careers.

When you have players with this mindset coming to your club, it means you are likely to lose them anytime, and it is hard to build a team that can win trophies around inconsistencies like this.

The top sides like Manchester City and Liverpool always add new players to their squad to make them better, and they seldom lose their top stars unless they replace them with better ones.

Spurs have struggled to keep their best men, and whenever a key player leaves, you must replace them and start rebuilding afresh, which has been an issue for the Lilywhites and clearly one reason they cannot have a team capable of winning trophies.

A lack of killer instinct

Having players who have won many trophies at their former clubs help to create a winning mindset and a killer instinct in any squad.

These players can easily lead others at the club to win trophies because they have been there and done it before, so they can easily tell how to replicate success.

The leading players at Spurs, like Harry Kane and Son Heung-min, have not won major trophies in their careers, which makes it hard for them to inspire their teammates to finish off teams and win as many matches as possible.

Winning games is how you win trophies, but so often, Tottenham has struggled to see off opponents with the type of efficiency that teams who win competitions have, and it is one reason they are still not a club to worry about in any title race.

Antonio Conte is a very demanding manager and has made them an efficient club in some areas, he could be the man that brings that killer instinct to the Tottenham Stadium, but he will need time and players.

They must also keep Kane and Son because if either leaves them, their work towards ending their trophy drought will end in another disappointment, and Conte will almost certainly go.

Target a small trophy first

Spurs have been very ambitious in almost every campaign and often try to win the Premier League or even the Champions League.

Having reached the final of the latter in 2019, they will feel nothing is impossible, and it is admirable that they want to win big when they end their trophy drought.

However, the surest path towards ending their trophy drought would be to win a small trophy first and see how it progresses.

While still challenging for the top four, Spurs should initially work hard to win the Carabao Cup or the FA Cup because this will help settle their taste for one gong.

After that, they could target the major trophies and the experience from winning the small one will be invaluable.

If Spurs reach the final of any of these competitions today, Tottenham tickets will sell fast because their fans have waited for their team to win a trophy for so long.

Spurs have the players and structure to win trophies, and you get the feeling that it could happen soon. Still, they must be prepared for the challenge ahead of them because winning medals in England or Europe is a challenging feat and only comes through many sacrifices.