The prospect of Tottenham Hotspur playing Championship football in 2026 has moved from a dark joke to a mathematical probability.

Spurs are currently winless in the league this calendar year, taking just five points from a possible 39. With interim boss Igor Tudor set to leave by mutual consent following the death of his father, the club is reportedly in talks with Adi Hutter to lead a final seven-game survival mission.

According to Danny Murphy, the issue isn’t just a lack of points, but a fundamental lack of the stomach required to survive at the bottom of the table.

Speaking on talkSPORT, the former Liverpool midfielder delivered a scathing assessment of a squad he believes is ill-equipped for a dogfight.

“They (Tottenham) look all over the place,” Murphy said.

“They showed a bit of resilience second half of Liverpool. Other than that, the games I’ve seen have been pretty woeful. And they don’t look together…”

“When you’re fighting down on the bottom, the one thing you’ve got to have is resilience and togetherness and a desire to defend. The really worrying thing (against Forest) was the capitulation.

“The energy didn’t go the other way, which it should do when you’re 1-0 down in terms of your reaction. They shrunk. They shrunk and it looked, there was a bit of fear in them, which is understandable because they’ve struggled at home so badly.”

While Spurs have been linked with “project” managers like Hutter, Murphy suggested that the club’s survival might require a much more pragmatic, if unpopular, solution.

MORE ON F365…
* Tottenham: Tudor exit date revealed by insider as ‘new manager’ is given two weeks training
* Who will be Spurs manager next season? Top target backed into clear favourite
* Spurs: Dyche reacts to speculation as ‘no to De Zerbi’ campaign over Greenwood begins

“Well, right now, the one who screams at me, but he’s not Tottenham, is Sam Allardyce,” Murphy admitted. “He’s the man who knows how to get results, but he’s been out of the game for a while, so it’s probably unrealistic.”

“The expectation of the crowd is there, the disgruntlement’s there, and it takes a strong mindset to play through that. Defensively, you have to be clued up, switched on, and do the basics right. And they don’t. They don’t. And that’s the coach’s fault.”

“I don’t know, I’ve got a feeling no (Spurs won’t stay up) at the minute… When I watch Forest’s second half against Tottenham, they didn’t half have a good shape without the ball. Really good shape.”

The fixture list offers very little breathing room. While West Ham and Leeds have arguably kinder run-ins, Tottenham face daunting away-day trips to Sunderland, Wolves, Aston Villa, and Chelsea.

“West Ham now under Nuno. They’ve got a good shape, good platform. I know Villa beat them. Villa are a good side. You know, you can go to Villa when you’re playing well, never mind when you’re (down the bottom) and get beat. But that was only West Ham’s second defeat in seven. So they’ve got a bit about them. They’re having a go.”

“And the reason I think Tottenham, if they keep the manager, will go is because I don’t see anybody who’s just about to get fit or sitting on the bench waiting in the wings who’s got the capability of grabbing a game and calming everybody down and getting them playing… I’ve looked at all the teams’ fixtures down there, and I think they (Tottenham) are struggling.”

READ NEXT: Man Utd ‘in purgatory’ under Carrick as Klopp ‘logic’ dispels top replacement doubts