The No. 1 Reason Why Tottenham Go Trophyless Again

16 years have we waited. Yet again do we dream of seeing Tottenham lift a trophy? But it will remain a dream. The reason Spurs will go trophyless in the coming season is found between the posts.

• A new number 9?

• A new number 6?

• A new winger?

• Competition for Maddison?

• Competition for Porro and Udogie?

All those possible signings would be great additions to Tottenham's squad. But they are not enough if Spurs aim for a trophy THIS season.

Rumors and links are overflowing us at the moment. Names such as Gallagher, David, Eze, Vanderson, Murillo, Chiesa, etc. make supporters and pundits compete with each other in arguing which signing is the most crucial for Spurs' chances in the upcoming season.

Surprisingly, most Spurs fans "forget" the most necessary thing Tottenham has to do in the coming weeks. Without this one signing, Ange Postecoglu's trophy ambitions are demolished before the first kick on the ball.

Why Tottenham win nothing this season

The "missing link" is found between the post.

Vicario is our number-one goalkeeper and one of the best in the Premier League. Hopefully, he will stay at Spurs for many years to come.

The Italian did go his entire first season at Spurs without injuries or suspensions, but how realistic is it to expect a first-choice goalkeeper to go two seasons without any minor or major incident, that being a red card, a minor knock, or a serious injury?

And here comes the major issue. What does Tottenham do if/when they face a spell of three, five, seven, or even more games without Vicario?

The Italian goalkeeper played every game last season, except one: The infamous Carabao Cup tie at Fulham. We all know how that ended and the performance of backup goalie Fraser Forster proved that the depth of Spurs’ goalkeeper department is nowhere near trophy-winning standards.

Forster does not have the same quality as years ago and is not fit for "Ange ball". His absence (due to injury) from pre-season action makes it probable that Brandon Austin, who just signed a new long-term deal with the Club but has yet to prove his worth, will start the season as our backup goalie.

That is if not Johan Lange, Daniel Levy, and Ange Postecoglu have a surprise goalkeeper transfer lined up that materializes in the last weeks before the Premier League kicks off. During the summer, reports have linked Tottenham with Espanyol goalkeeper Joan Garcia. The likeliness of Levy to splash the cash and meet the release clause of + £20 million for a backup goalkeeper can, however, be questioned.

Busy season

In our opinion, this would be a better investment than throwing £30-40 million after e.g. Wolves' Pedro Neto, as not securing a Premier League standard backup goalkeeper will put Tottenham in trouble. Having to rely on Brandon Austin/Fraser Forster (or Luca Gunter?) due to a Vicario injury would be disastrous to both trophy ambitions and Champions League qualification.

The problem, however, is that Tottenham, one way or another, will have to rely on one of them. Considering Spurs' minimum of 48 games in all competitions, which will probably be closer to 55 than 50, the club will end up with +/- 15 more games than last season. Inevitably, Vicario can not play all those games, meaning that Forster/Austin/Gunter will be defending the Tottenham goal during various games of the season.

If the Italian stays fit (knock on wood), he will be rested in a fair amount of games. That will not be the case for Spurs' Premier League games, but the Carabao Cup and the Europa League are competitions where it is more than likely that Postecoglu will turn to Fraser Forster or Brandon Austin.

What are Tottenham's chances of winning a trophy in the coming season?

Premier League

Even if Tottenham were to get their (reported) 2-3 marquee signings before the transfer window shuts AND secure a new backup goalkeeper, the chances of Tottenham lifting the Premier League trophy in May 2025 are close to zero.

As of today (August 1), we see Spurs, in a best-case scenario, battle for a Top 4 position. Should the team have to deal with a (serious) Vicario injury, and not sign a new backup keeper, improving last season's 5th place could be more than challenging.

Carabao Cup

Maybe Spurs' best possibility of winning a trophy in the coming season. However, the Carabao Cup is a competition where managers use their squads. Even though Postecoglu received a lot of criticism for the way he didn't prioritize the competition last season, considering this season's massive increase in games, the Aussie will probably let his squad depth come to a test in the 2024/2025 version of the Carabao Cup as well.

There are reasons to believe that Vicario will be rested in the Carabao Cup, and we experienced the consequences of the lack of depth in Spurs' goalkeeper department in last season's tie versus Fulham.

Draw-dependant, Tottenham should go further in the competition this coming season. We can't, however, see Spurs as Carabao Cup champions with Fraser Forster or Brandon Austin in goal from beginning to end.

Austin was less than impressive in Spurs' latest pre-season match against the K-League All Stars.

FA Cup

In the most prestigious domestic cup competition Spurs will probably field what is (close to) their best starting XI. At least if drawn against a strong opposition. However, being a prioritized competition by most clubs, going all the way is (in theory) more difficult than what is the case in the Carabao Cup.

Also, knowing how Tottenham has performed in cup competitions over the recent years, no fan would be shocked to see Spurs - with Fraser Forster og Brandon Austin in goal - make a fourth-round exit to an enthusiastic Championship team.

Europa League

This is probably the cup competition most Spurs fans dream of winning in the coming season. In its new format, Tottenham is guaranteed at least 8 games, with a maximum of 15 (or 17) games (depending on league phase position) if Postecoglu is to take the team to the final in Bilbao.

We guess that Big Ange will rely on his squad depth in many of the first games of the competition. This means that Vicario can also look forward to some rest when Tottenham travels Europe, and maybe we have to get to the quarterfinals before Postecoglu goes with Vicario as his regular Europa League starter.

Even though Fraser Forster or Brandon Austin should get us through the group phase, you don't have to be a lifelong Tottenham supporter to see a potential Playoff round and the Round of 16 as potential banana peels for a Tottenham side without a Premier League standard goalkeeper between the posts.

What do you think? Is a new goalkeeper the most important signing that Tottenham needs?