Tottenham slumped to a 4-2 defeat to fellow strugglers Wolves as their wretched Premier League season continued.
Rayan Ait-Nouri’s strike and a Djed Spence own goal put Wolves in control by the interval following unconvincing moments from Spurs goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario.
Mathys Tel’s goal made it 2-1 after the break, only for Jorgen Strand Larsen to restore the hosts two-goal advantage after a mistake by Cristian Romero.
Richarlison pulled a second goal back for Spurs but, within a minute, Matheus Cunha had capitalised on Lucas Bergvall’s error to ensure a 17th league defeat of the season for Ange Postecoglou’s side.
Here are three Spurs talking points from the match…
Abject display an insult to fans
Yes, the Europa League is the priority for Spurs but the manner in which Postecoglou’s side coasted to another abject defeat in the league was insulting to supporters - hundreds of whom had made the long trip to Molineux.
Spurs played like a side who had earned the right to be on the beach rather than a team which, mathematically, could still be relegated from the top-flight.
They were embarrassingly lax at the back, with all four of Wolves’ goals the result of terrible individual errors, and predictably conceded inside two minutes after a familiarly dreadful start.
Between Wolves’ first two goals, Spurs were actually on top, controlling possession and probing for a leveller, albeit without carving out any clear chances.
It was a measure of the brittleness of Postecoglou’s side that they crumbled under the slightest pressure, conceding a second from a rare Wolves foray into the final third.
Twice in the second half, Spurs looked to have dragged themselves back into the game, with first Tel and then substitute Richarlison scoring scrappily from close-range.
On both occasions, though, Wolves quickly restored their two-goal advantage after dismal mistakes, first from Romero and then Bergvall.
It means three of Spurs' most important players, Vicario, Romero and Bergvall, will travel to Germany for Thursday's crunch Europa League quarter-final decider on the back of individual errors, which is far from ideal.
For the avoidance of doubt, Postecoglou (as he has often acknowledged himself) bears ultimate responsibility for another abject performance.
There are, of course, bigger problems at Spurs than the manager and there is a genuine question about where chairman Daniel Levy’s responsibility for this season ends and Postecoglou’s begins.
But you have to feel that the way Spurs are drifting towards an historically-low Premier League finish is primarily about the manager’s decisions and the environment he has created.
No amount of fiery comments about the negative view of the club from outsiders or his determination to root out a mole in the camp should distract from that, although Spurs can entirely change the mood and narrative with a win in Eintracht Frankfurt.
Vicario display a concern
Singling out individual players after such a collectively bad display feels futile but a jittery performance from Vicario was nonetheless a huge concern for Postecoglou.
Both Wolves’ first-half goals were the result of Vicairo wildly flapping at crosses when he could have caught the ball, leaving Spurs with a huge challenge to claw their way back into the game.
The Italian was also poor with the ball at his feet.
Ait-Nouri volleyed home directly from Vicario’s limp punch, though the Italian was not guilty of leaving the full-back completely unmarked on the edge of the box.
The second goal was a howler, Vicario parrying a deflected cross into Spence under pressure from Strand Larsen.
He was caught in possession more than once, including moments after the opening goal, but Wolves narrowly failed to capitalise on the mistake.
Since returning from injury, Vicario has been one of Spurs’ most reliable player and the 28-year-old is a dressing–room leader, whose presence is enormously valued by the coach.
But even he appears to be suffering a crisis of confidence right now, which is a particular worry going into Thursday’s decider in Frankfurt, which is likely to be a cagey affair, potentially determined by a mistake or a moment of brilliance.
Kulusevski return a positive
There was, at least, one positive for Spurs from another wretched afternoon in the form of Dejan Kulusevski’s return to the pitch for the first time since February.
Postecoglou had suggested that the Swede would be more likely to feature from the bench against Frankfurt but he is now surely in with a chance of starting in Germany, even if he only played the final 15 minutes at Molineux as a replacement for James Maddison.
A fit-again Kulusevski further increases Postecoglou’s option for the match: if he starts, he is most likely to play on the right of the front three, replacing Brennan Johnson,
Postecoglou could also move Kulusevski into midfield as an alternative to Maddison or even pair them together ahead of Bergvall in what would be an ultra-attacking set-up.
He will add energy and creativity to a side currently lacking both and could hold the key to breaking down the German side and helping to disrupt their threat on the counter-attack.
Though he faded before being injured, Kulusevski still has a case to be Spurs’ player of the season, so his return is a boost - even if it will count for little if Spurs do not win on Thursday.
