Tottenham suffered their 16th defeat of the Premier League season against Sunderland at the Stadium of Light.
Roberto De Zerbi’s first game in charge of Tottenham Hotspur did not go to plan as they fell to an uninspiring 1-0 loss to Sunderland on Sunday.
Spurs started the game well and created a couple of chances, which the forwards couldn’t finish. After a spell of possession, they soon ceded control of the game. Sunderland started slowly but grew into the game and started asking questions of Tottenham’s defence.
Antonin Kinsky, deputising for the injured Guglielmo Vicario, made a strong save to deny Brian Brobbey in the first half. However, the young shot-stopper was helpless when Nordi Mukiele’s heavily deflected strike off Micky van de Ven flew past him in the 61st-minute. This led to the Lilywhites’ 16th defeat of the Premier League season and the worst possible start to De Zerbi’s era at White Hart Lane.
Rob Green slams Tottenham players after Sunderland defeat
After West Ham’s 4-0 win over rock-bottom Wolves at home last week, Tottenham slipped into the relegation zone for the first time this season. And the 1-0 loss to Sunderland means De Zerbi’s side ended the gameweek there.
Looking back on the defeat at the Stadium of Light, former West Ham goalkeeper Rob Green launched a scathing attack on the Tottenham players for failing to show up for their gaffer.
“You were looking for a response. New manager’s first game in charge, honeymoon period, and it hasn’t come. There is a feeling now for Tottenham that the problems are becoming too big for the players. The effort and endeavour was there, but it’s just not falling for them. And you do fear for them,” Rob Green said on BBC Radio 5 Live (h/t BBC Sport).
Tottenham’s miserable 2026 continues
Tottenham haven’t won in the Premier League in 2026, with their last league win coming under Thomas Frank in a 1-0 victory over Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park on 28 December.
Spurs were unlucky not to get anything out of the Sunderland game. Randal Kolo Muani’s penalty was overturned following a lengthy VAR review, Cristian Romero was forced off with a knee injury, and Mukiele’s winner took a huge deflection off Van de Ven. The defeat stretched the Lilywhites’ winless run in the Premier League to 14 games, which is now the club’s second-longest run without a league victory, behind a 16-game streak from 1934-35.
The North Londoners now have six Premier League matches remaining to secure their future, with Brighton and Hove Albion’s visit to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium next up. The Seagulls will try their best to pile more misery on their former boss De Zerbi, but the Italian has to come up with a strong plan to stop them.