The stats that shame Spurs: Ange Postecoglou's side have faced the most shots this year, conceded more goals than Ipswich… and have one man to thank that it's not any worse!

Three down, one to go – if Ange Postecoglou is going to keep his word of winning a trophy in his second season, it’s going to have to be the Europa League.

After defeat by Aston Villa on Sunday, a game once again plagued by chants from the Spurs fans for chairman Daniel Levy to leave the club, Postecoglou’s side are out of both domestic cups and the Premier League is a fever dream.

But how bad has it really been? With players falling like flies and different ways to fix the issues arising every game, it’s been a season to forget.

The likes of Cristian Romero, Micky Van De Ven and Guglielmo Vicario have all been missing for extended periods, and players such as Archie Gray have tried to fill in, but the absentees have been brutal – and may be the reason Postecoglou is still in a job.

Defensively is where the main issues lay. Whether that’s from direct issues in defence in terms of injuries or elsewhere, such as midfield struggles, it’s hard to tell. But the numbers at the back are up there with the worst.

Mail Sport take a look at the stats – mostly provided by Opta – that shame Spurs this season – and in 2025 in particular. 

Son Heung-min, captain of the side, has been unable to lead them to a successful season

The defeat by Aston Villa on Sunday means Spurs now have only the Europa League to play for

Goals conceded

Tottenham, in reality, aren’t in a relegation battle. They are 14th in the Premier League table, but 10 points above the bottom three. In terms of goals conceded, though, they are up there with the worst.

They have played 39 games in all competitions this season, conceding a whopping 57 goals. That’s over 1.5 a game, and is lower than only Leicester and Southampton – 62 and 63 respectively. Below that is Wolves with 56 – decent company.

In 2025 alone, Spurs top the lot. Conceding 17 goals this calendar year, they are on par with Ipswich, while conceding more than Southampton and Leicester.

Their Premier League total of 37, meanwhile, is the fifth-worst in the division. 

Tottenham’s makeshift defence has conceded 57 goals in 39 games this season – 1.5 a game

Teenager Archie Gray, naturally a midfielder, has had to fill in at centre back from midfield

Shots faced

In 2025, in which Spurs have played 11 games, they have faced 167 shots on goal. That’s more than 15 a game on average, and 52 of them have been on target, with 17 of them going in.

That equates to 15.2 per game – the third-most in the league, below West Ham (15.8) and Brentford (16.3). 

Their shots faced total is more than 40 higher of any Premier League club in all competitions, with Manchester City conceding the next most with 126. Then come Newcastle with 120, Brentford with 114 and Manchester United with 109.

In terms of shots on target, Spurs’ 52 is six more than Southampton’s 46, eight more than Manchester City’s 44 and nine more than Newcastle’s 43.

Expected goals against

From the shots Tottenham have faced this year, they have conceded an expected goals against (xGA) number of 20.1.

For those not familiar with the metric, it assesses the quality of chances that teams are creating by working out the percentage chance that an effort will go in considering where it comes from on the pitch.

The numbers reveal that Spurs are conceding high-quality chances at will. They have actually only conceded 17 goals this year compared to the 20-odd they should have done, and they have goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky to thank for that.

In terms of the average, that’s 1.8 xGA a game – the second worst in the league behind Southampton, who are up at 2.4.

Stand-in goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky has helped his side concede 17 goals from more than 20 expected goals this year

Not all is bad, though – in attack, Spurs are up there with the best in the league and continue to click going forward

But it’s not all bad…

When it comes to defending, Tottenham are all over the place. Up there with the worst in the league. But the imminent returns of Romero and Van De Ven could help that.

Up front, there are injuries – Dominic Solanke is out, Wilson Odobert has missed almost the whole season and Richarlison looks set for another spell on the sidelines – but that hasn’t stopped them performing.

Spurs have scored the third-most goals in the league this season with 48, behind Liverpool with 56 and Arsenal with 49 – tied with Manchester City.

They are fifth for expected goals and the same for big chances created. Tidy up the defence, and the potential to be a really good side is there. It’s how that defence is tidied up – and how quickly – that leaves the problem.