One thing clear in Tottenham’s draw: Pochettino has lost the dressing room

After agonizingly watching Tottenham draw 1-1 with Watford at home, one thing is clear: Mauricio Pochettino has, possibly irreparably, lost the support of his players.

Dele Alli saved Spurs a point through a controversial equalizer in the dying stages. But the draw feels more like a lost, especially considering Watford’s utterly abject start to the campaign.

Tottenham’s outing against Watford resembled almost every other match this season, with lots of possession that amounted to nothing. Saying Spurs attack is listless doesn’t do the inadequacies justice. Harry Kane receives absolutely no service in Mauricio Pochettino’s current setup.

Moussa Sissoko, for all of his rugged qualities, isn’t good enough to start, especially beside Harry Winks in the heart of midfield. Neither player can take control or dictate the pace. Nor can either pick out a telling pass, which only exacerbates the side’s staleness.

Dele Alli and Lucas Moura are shadows of their former upstart selves, neither of whom is displaying the craft, ingenuity or pace we all knew and love. A lot of these deficiencies could be blamed on an overriding lack of confidence. Unfortunately the answer is not that simple.

And I won’t even go into Danny Rose’s performance until the player ratings are published later this afternoon. Suffice to say, he is the most pathetic and disinterested of the bunch.

Against the second worst defensive record in the league, Tottenham barely launched a threatening attack. Dele Alli had a somewhat tame left-footed shot corralled by Ben Foster, and Son Heung-Min, who came on at halftime to change slightly the complexion of the match, almost scored early in the stanza. His fierce shot was tipped on to the bar by an alert Foster.

Before today Watford had conceded 20 goals in their winless streak of eight matches. Saying Tottenham are in crisis doesn’t put into context just how miserable the current scenario is. Pocettino’s job is surely under pressure now. How can it not be after his side has capitulated week after week?

It would be one thing if the malaise is merely down to a lack of quality.

However, seeing the palpable, abhorrent lack of effort in a number of positions across the park makes one realize that Pochettino no longer has the support of a large proportion of his players.