It's a desperate situation. Tottenham Hotspur, which lost captain Son Heung-min, is falling endlessly.
Tottenham lost 0-2 to Manchester United in an away match at Manchester on the 7th (Korean time). That extended their winless streak to seven league matches (4 draws, 3 losses). Their position slipped from 14th to 15th. Their record in the last 16 matches is just two wins.
The distance to the relegation zone is closing quickly. The point gap with West Ham is 6 points, and they are ahead of 16th-place Leeds United only on goal difference. 17th-place Nottingham Forest is also within reach.
If the poor form continues, relegation is no longer hypothetical. Above all, the mood is precarious. The "captain leadership" that was hard to imagine in the Son Heung-min era has collapsed. The turning point in the Man United defeat was the dismissal of captain Cristian Romero.
In the 29th minute of the first half, Romero kicked Casemiro's shin and stepped on his ankle while handling the ball. The referee's decision was immediate. A straight red card. Reduced to ten men, Tottenham lost momentum. Man United settled the match with consecutive goals from Bryan Mbeumo in the 38th minute of the first half and Bruno Fernandes in the 36th minute of the second half.
The controversy grew, especially because Romero has been consistently targeting the Tottenham club. After a 2-2 draw with Manchester City, he said, "I wasn't feeling well, but I played because the team's available resources were limited to 11," openly criticizing the club's transfer policy.
The backlash over the captain's reckless dismissal was large. Romero received a four-match suspension for this red card. A straight red normally carries three matches, but one match was added because of a previous red card against Liverpool in December last year. He will miss matches against Newcastle, Arsenal, Fulham and Crystal Palace. This is his sixth sending-off since joining in 2021. It is the most red cards in the EPL during that period.
Criticism poured in. Tottenham alumnus Danny Murphy said, "The captain, who has been talking about a lack of player signings, behaved like this. It's irresponsible." Jay Boswellroy said bluntly, "Romero is one of the best defenders, but if disciplinary problems repeat, the captain's armband should be taken away."
Manager Thomas Frank defended him. "It wasn't an intentional dismissal. He apologized in the locker room, and he is one of our most important players," he said, dismissing the possibility of stripping him of the captaincy.
But the embers did not die. The British tabloid The Sun mentioned Conor Gallagher as a candidate for the next captain. In the leadership vacuum after Son Heung-min's absence, Gallagher, who has Premier League experience and has served as stand-in captain, has emerged as an alternative, the analysis said.
Tottenham's crisis is structural before it is tactical. Declining results, leadership collapse and disciplinary risk have overlapped at once. The debate over the captain's armband is likely to grow even larger going forward.<
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