Tottenham Hotspur were three goals behind heading into the second leg of our Champions League round of 16 tie with Atlético Madrid.
An utterly remarkable early collapse at the Metropolitano, aided by a greasy playing surface and Antonín Kinsky's breakdown, killed the tie almost before it had begun. Things did improve after the opening 20 or so minutes, but when we returned to north London for the return leg, few expected Igor Tudor's Lilywhites to produce something remarkable.
Instead, we implored others to merely enjoy the occasion. With our domestic position so desperate, who knew when Spurs would break bread with Europe's aristocracy again? Relegation would set us back years.
Demotion remained a frightening possibility until the final day, but João Palhinha's scrappy effort helped N17 breathe a massive sigh of relief. Now, despite back-to-back 17th-place finishes, there's a genuine sense of excitement brewing around the place. There's a chance we bounce back in a big way next season.
Spurs can learn from Man Utd after Europa League final defeat
Manchester United were on their knees after succumbing in Bilbao. Their world was ever so bleak, but they didn't allow that self-pity to fester. A seismic institution, the Red Devils were able to attract two of the Premier League's most prolific forwards and one of Europe's most promising young strikers to reinvent their attack.
They splurged more than £200m on Bryan Mbeumo, Benjamin Šeško and Matheus Cunha, before striking gold with the relatively unknown Senne Lammens between the posts. Still, things didn't fall into place for the Red Devils, who were knocked out of both domestic cups early and had no European football, until they found the right coach.
A disagreement with the hierarchy meant Ruben Amorim left the club at the start of the calendar year with United just outside the top five. Darren Fletcher reigned briefly as caretaker manager before Michael Carrick returned for his second interim spell.
Carrick didn't reinvent the wheel in Manchester. He merely took a common-sense approach. By maximising the talent at his disposal through astute profiling, he was able to improve United as a collective drastically. With limited midweek distractions (Luke Shaw played every single Premier League game, for crying out loud!), the Red Devils soared up the table and finished third. They'll be back in the big time next season.
There's an opportunity for Spurs to bounce back in a big way
Now, Tottenham are massive, but we can't compare ourselves to Man Utd. I don't think we'll be splurging more than £200m on three players to revolutionise a single position group. That's besides the point, though.
There are a lot of holes in this squad, ones that will be fixed by players returning from injury and astuteness in the transfer window. United didn't complete their squad last summer, leaving themselves short in midfield, and Spurs are unlikely to satisfy absolutely everyone with the work they conduct ahead of 2026/27. Perhaps we'll once again be lamenting the absence of a passer in midfield, or our inability to adequately replace Pedro Porro.
I suspect that there will be a feeling that we could've done more.
Anyway, what we do have is the manager. Roberto De Zerbi worked a minor miracle with the squad at his disposal to keep us up, so we know that the Italian doesn't need summer transfer window utopia for Spurs to bounce back next season. However, De Zerbi will expect major changes of personnel, and there are early signs of proactivity.
As bad as the previous two Premier League seasons were, Spurs have the resources to get back amongst it next season. The absence of European football must surely reduce the risk of an injury crisis, with De Zerbi also having plenty of time to impose his more complex tactical ideals upon the group.
There will be nine Premier League teams dealing with midweek continental action after Crystal Palace won the Conference League, and very few will be able to build a squad as deep as Arsenal's which would allow them to compete so fiercely on both fronts.
The likes of Bournemouth, Brighton and Sunderland are bound to prioritise the novelty of Europe, opening the door for the fading members of the 'Big Six' to resurge domestically.
Spurs don't need to have the perfect summer, but a transfer window good enough should set the Lilywhites up for a prosperous 2026/27 campaign. De Zerbi knows he has a sleeping giant in the palm of his hand.
Add us as a preferred source on Google