3 talking points from Tottenham's 4-0 loss against Newcastle United

3. Persistent problems and looking forward

Set pieces continue to be a thorn in Tottenham's side, evident yet again as Newcastle had a field day before Schar put the final nail in the coffin. Sorting out defending on dead-ball situations needs to be top of the to-do list.

Guglielmo Vicario's been having a mare dealing with them all season, and the backline isn't exactly stepping up to the plate either. Where's Gianni Vio when you need him, eh? It's crystal clear this squad's got a mountain to climb before they're back in the title hunt.

There's no sugar-coating it - Tottenham looked utterly hapless in their 4-0 drubbing by Newcastle, who now trail Spurs in sixth place. While mistakes were spread across the pitch, Micky van de Ven's been catching the flak for his mishaps, slipping up more times than he'd care to admit and getting caught out of position on the regular.

With a North London Derby against second-placed Arsenal looming on the horizon, Tottenham's got some soul-searching to do.

Ange Postecoglou summed it up best: "It's not just one person's fault. It's on all of us." Hard to argue with that, really.

But with chances squandered up front and defensive lapses aplenty, it's clear this loss was a team effort. Time for Spurs to regroup, or risk getting left in the dust.