Jermaine Jenas questions Tottenham’s improvement, says they are weaker defensively than before

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The former Tottenham Hotspur midfielder believes his old side struggle to “win ugly.”

Over the last few seasons, Tottenham have been considered as a club on the up due to their improvements domestically.

Mauricio Pochettino’s men have been transformed from Europa League regulars to title candidates thanks to the form of stars such as Harry Kane, Christian Eriksen and Dele Alli, and finished their past two Premier League campaigns in the Champions League places.

But one man who doesn’t think the club are heading in the right direction is former Spurs midfielder Jermaine Jenas.

Jenas, who made over 150 appearances for Tottenham, believes that his old side were weaker defensively this season and this was typified in their Champions League exit to Juventus in March, in which they conceded twice in three second-half minutes to go down 2-1.

Jenas told BBC Radio 5 Live: “I think Spurs, this year, are a worse team than they were last year. I think they’ve weakened in both full-back areas for starters.

“When I was watching Spurs against Juventus in the second leg all I kept thinking was what an unbelievable performance they’d put out in Turin and it was a 10 minute spell that flipped it on its head and they didn’t have what it took to adapt to that situation.

“They didn’t go ‘right, we’re bang up against it, let’s do a Mourinho and say you’re not coming through here and we’re going through’ – they stayed the same and they’re all to blame for that.”

Jenas also went on to say that Spurs need to learn how to grind out results if they are to challenge for top honours in the future.

“Sometimes it’s going to be ugly and you’re going to have to scrap it out just to get through those spells so for me, that’s where I thought they’re not as good as they were last year,” he added.

And when looking at Spurs’ league finish and cup performances this season, it’s hard to disagree with Jenas.

Tottenham finished third this term – one place below their 2016/17 finish – and matched their runs in the League Cup and FA Cup by exiting in the last 16 and semi-finals respectively.

And while reaching the last 16 of the Champions League was an improvement on their European performance the previous season, it has to be asked whether Spurs are indeed moving forward – or if they are a club needing an overhaul in order to challenge at the top.