Skip to main content

It's been a wild, wild ride for Tottenham, but it's now time to take a breath, relax and evaluate ahead of what's expected to be a busy summer.

A weird league campaign, disappointing domestic cup exits and an enthralling run in Europe made the season one to remember for Tottenham fans.

Here's a look back at the Spurs season as a whole and an overall grade for the report card.

League Performance

Premier League - 4th


Make no mistake here, Pochettino has worked miracles again getting Tottenham into the top four for the fourth consecutive season, but it was a seriously weird league campaign.

There was even chat about the north Londoners being potential title challengers in December, which was quickly dispelled after a surprise 3-1 defeat to Wolves. For about two thirds of the season, their place in the top four wasn't really questioned.

tottenham-hotspur-v-wolverhampton-wanderers-premier-league-5cf4d8a66ea5875a1a000001.jpg

That was until the wheels came off towards the end of the campaign.

Spurs only managed to win three of their final 12 league games, with injuries to players like Harry Kane and Harry Winks leaving Pochettino thin on the ground for alternatives.

However, one of those three league wins was the 2-0 success over Crystal Palace, the first senior game played at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. 

Thankfully for the Lilywhites, neither Arsenal or Manchester United could capitalise on the many slip ups and Spurs' spot in the top four was effectively confirmed when the Gunners drew at home to Brighton on the penultimate weekend.

tottenham-hotspur-v-everton-fc-premier-league-5cf4d965e86ef92273000001.jpg

Spurs ended the term with 23 wins, the same amount as their 2017/18 campaign, but lost an enormous 13 games, drawing just twice. They were also six points shy of the 77 they picked up last year, scoring fewer and conceding more.

Domestic Cup Performance

Carabao Cup - Semi Finals

Just like in the FA Cup in the 2016/17 and 2017/18 seasons, the semi final stage was as far as Tottenham could manage in the Carabao Cup this time around.

A 4-2 penalty shootout victory over Watford after a 2-2 draw at Stadium MK in Milton Keynes (yes, Tottenham actually played a game in Milton Keynes) took them to the fourth round, where they saw off London rivals West Ham fairly comfortably with a 3-1 win.

arsenal-v-tottenham-hotspur-carabao-cup-quarter-final-5cf4d9f18c3293b117000001.jpg

Spurs got revenge against Arsenal for the 4-2 league loss at the Emirates in December 17 days later as goals from Son Heung-min and Dele Alli put them in the hat for the semi finals. They avoided Manchester City in the draw, but still ended up with Chelsea.

A 1-0 win at Wembley thanks to a controversial Harry Kane penalty never seemed like a big enough lead to take to Stamford Bridge, and Chelsea ensured the tie would go to penalties with a 2-1 win.

The Blues were faultless from the spot while Eric Dier, the scorer of England's shootout winner against Colombia at the 2018 World Cup, and Lucas Moura both failed to convert, sending Spurs out of the competition.

chelsea-v-tottenham-hotspur-carabao-cup-semi-final-second-leg-5cf4dabb8c3293f18b000001.jpg

FA Cup - Fourth Round

A 7-0 victory over Tranmere in the third round gave Spurs fans the impression Pochettino was willing to give the FA Cup a proper go. Kane even came off the bench to score the seventh, because a League Two defender definitely wants to see one of the world's best strikers come on as a substitute when their side is already 6-0 down.

However, domestic cup success was shelved for another year following a terrible loss at Crystal Palace.

fbl-eng-facup-crystal-palace-tottenham-5cf4daf98c32931800000006.jpg

Connor Wickham stuck the Eagles ahead at Selhurst Park before former Tottenham winger Andros Townsend doubled their advantage. For some reason, Kieran Trippier was chosen as Spurs' penalty taker, and it wasn't a shock when he blazed wide after the visitors were awarded a spot kick.

Tottenham were lethargic throughout the game and their hopes of winning a first FA Cup since 1991 deservedly ended in Croydon.

Continental Cup Performance

Champions League - Runners Up

This is where the fun begins, so cheers for sticking with me up to this point!

Placed in Group B alongside Barcelona, Inter and PSV, Tottenham got off to a pretty dreadful start, picking up just one point from their opening three games. They squandered leads in Italy and the Netherlands and were dispatched emphatically by Barca at Wembley.

psv-v-tottenham-hotspur-uefa-champions-league-group-b-5cf4e12c8c3293340c000002.jpg

However, they turned it around to qualify as runners up in the group after narrow wins against both PSV and Inter at home before securing a dramatic draw at Camp Nou, progressing ahead of Inter having scored more goals than their Serie A counterparts.

It's Borussia Dortmund, the then Bundesliga leaders, who await Tottenham in the round of 16. They dominate the first half at Wembley but fail to make their dominance count before Spurs somewhat unbelievably put the tie to bed through goals from Son Heung-min, Jan Vertonghen and Fernando Llorente. Spurs also win in Germany 1-0, Harry Kane striking.

Spurs draw Manchester City in the quarters and things get off to a rocky start when Danny Rose is penalised for handball in the area. However, Hugo Lloris saves Sergio Aguero's penalty and Son scores late on to give Spurs the initiative.

fbl-eur-c1-man-city-tottenham-5cf4e1888c3293693b000001.jpg

The return leg is a certified Champions League classic, with five goals in the opening 21 minutes and VAR drama for the ages. In short, Sterling scores, Son scores, Son scores again, Bernardo Silva scores, Sterling scores again, Aguero scores, Llorente scores, Sterling scores but it's disallowed. 4-4 on aggregate, Spurs go through on away goals.

Ajax beat a lethargic Tottenham in north London in the first leg of the semi final, and all hope seems lost when the Eredivisie champions charge into a 3-0 aggregate lead at the Johan Cruyff Arena in the return fixture through Matthijs de Ligt and Hakim Ziyech.

What happens next is the stuff of legend.

fbl-eur-c1-ajax-tottenham-5cf4e1f78c32932632000001.jpg

Lucas Moura charges through the middle and whips a low shot past Andre Onana. Back in it. Four minutes later, he sticks one through Frenkie de Jong's legs and into the back of the net after an Onana mistake. Very much back in it.

In the 95th minute, Moussa Sissoko sends a hopeful long ball forward. Llorente flicks it on. Alli plays it on to Lucas. The Brazilian strikes low, past the despairing Onana, to send Spurs to their first ever Champions League final.

The final itself is a disappointment. Liverpool score through Mohamed Salah in the second minute after Sissoko is punished for handball. Spurs huff and puff and look exhausted, as do Liverpool, but can't make their dominance in possession count.

tottenham-hotspur-v-liverpool-uefa-champions-league-final-5cf4e251e86ef92c6d000003.jpg

Tottenham's attacking players can't assert themselves and Divock Origi eventually puts the game to bed in the 87th minute.

Heartbreaking, yes, but the Champions League campaign has given Tottenham fans so many brilliant memories, and will hopefully act as a springboard for bigger and better things next season.

Best Player

Harry Kane did what Harry Kane tends to do whenever he plays: score important goals. However, when he got injured and Tottenham needed someone to step up, Son Heung-min became their talisman.

manchester-city-v-tottenham-hotspur-uefa-champions-league-quarter-final-second-leg-5ceeaee9155aecf2e0000001.jpg

The South Korean had a few brilliant spells of form, including patches in December, February and April, and his contribution against Manchester City in the quarter finals of the Champions League paved the way for Spurs to reach the final. Was truly clutch when Tottenham needed him.

Big shoutout to Moussa Sissoko, who channeled his inner GOAT to become a massively important player for Pochettino.

Worst Player

This one shouldn't shock you. Coming into the season off the back of a brilliant showing at the World Cup, including a career-peaking free kick against Croatia, Kieran Trippier was brought shudderingly back down to earth this year.

tottenham-hotspur-v-arsenal-fc-premier-league-5ceeadda155aec10d7000001.jpg

The England international made a number of awkward mistakes throughout the campaign, including an absolute clanger in the 2-0 loss at Chelsea. His lack of pace was frequently exploited by opposition wingers, and his positional sense seems to have gone totally AWOL.

A new right back is a must for next season. Spurs have lacked a quick threat out wide since the 2016/17 season when Danny Rose and Kyle Walker were rampaging down the wings, and it's something that needs to be addressed in the summer.

The Manager

You can't really question what Pochettino has achieved this year. Sure, Spurs developed a weird soft touch when the squad got stretched by injuries, but to finish inside the top four and finish runners up in the Champions League shows his evolution as a manager.

fbl-eur-c1-ajax-tottenham-5ceeae9cedd824e8f9000001.jpg

We'll have to wait and see whether Pochettino believes he can take the club forward after success in Europe and finally moving into the new stadium, but Spurs fans are still in love with their manager and it'll be a sad, sad day when those divorce papers are eventually signed.

Oh, and he's been linked with Manchester United and Real Madrid, if you weren't sure or didn't know.

Overall Grade

The league season unravelled horrendously, but Spurs still gave their fans the ride of a lifetime in Europe, defeating Dortmund, Manchester City and Ajax before losing to Liverpool in the Champions League final. 

Sure, there are things to improve, but what a rollercoaster it's been.

A -