Igor Tudor insisted that Premier League survival was at the top of Tottenham’s priorities ahead of their Champions League last 16 first leg clash with Atletico Madrid on Tuesday.
Tudor became just the second Spurs head coach in Premier League history to lose each of his first three games in charge following their 3-1 loss to Crystal Palace last time out.
Spurs have also failed to win 11 successive league games for the first time since October 1975 under Terry Neill (D7 L4), leaving them just a point above the bottom three.
The Opta supercomputer has assigned Spurs a 16.8% chance of being relegated, with Nottingham Forest (26.4%) and West Ham (48.9%) better fancied of the sides near them.
However, Tudor, who will take charge of his first game as a manager in the knockout stages of the Champions League at the Metropolitano, believes that their two-legged clash with Diego Simeone’s side could help his side improve at the business end of the season.
“[We must] focus on us, we’re playing against a team that has a story in this Champions League, they have experience, they have quality,” Tudor told reporters.
“We need to do our best in terms of what we need to grow. Our first aim is the Premier League; this should be said publicly, it’s a normal thing.
“This [competition] is something extra, but that doesn’t mean we don’t want to pass (through), that we don’t want to go to the next round.”
Madrid bound pic.twitter.com/q8rtCuqVUZ
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) March 9, 2026
In between the two legs against Atletico, Spurs visit Liverpool in the Premier League, and after the second leg, they host 17th-placed Forest in a crucial clash.
Tudor said the Atletico clash required a change in mindset, though Spurs have impressed in Europe, winning their last three Champions League games without conceding a goal.
In addition, Spurs ave only lost one of their last five Champions League meetings with Spanish opponents (W2 D2), a 2-4 home defeat to Barcelona in the 2018-19 group stage.
“Every game is important. We need to be focused on us, to grow, so it can be an opportunity,” Tudor added.
“A totally different mentality aspect can be used in this kind of game, so maybe this can help us to see which problems we have.
“I believe these kinds of games can help us to switch in the right way, but always focus on us growing as a team. To do things better.”
Defenders Djed Spence and Cristian Romero are available again, with captain Romero back from suspension to make his first appearance under Tudor.
And after using Richarlison off the bench during his first three games, Tudor said the Brazil forward will start on Tuesday.
“Players are coming back, that’s important,” said Tudor. “In all three games we missed the players on their positions and we missed the players who are usually playing.
“It’s a beautiful game to play tomorrow, a totally different competition than the Premier League.
“There is a good experience from this season, past games, so let’s see what happens tomorrow.”
