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In an exclusive conversation, former Tottenham Hotspur defender Toby Alderweireld discussed the key factors needed to restore the team’s competitiveness in the league.

Tottenham narrowly avoided relegation on the final day of the Premier League season, but significant rebuilding remains necessary if they are to climb back up the table in the coming years.

The North London outfit have now ended the campaign in 17th position for two consecutive seasons, though they did manage to lift the Europa League trophy in 2024-25 under the guidance of Ange Postecoglou.

During the 2025-26 season, Thomas Frank and Igor Tudor both had short managerial spells before Roberto De Zerbi took charge and ensured the club’s survival.

Toby Alderweireld, who was part of a far more successful Spurs era, helped the team secure top-three Premier League finishes on three occasions and reach their first-ever Champions League final. The former centre-back, who left the club in 2021 and retired last year, told FourFourTwo that he was disappointed to see how Tottenham’s season had unfolded.

“They need to make sure that a situation like this never, ever happens again,” Alderweireld said. “Imagine if they had gone down — it would have been catastrophic.”

“They need to look through the squad carefully and ask, ‘Who can handle the pressure? Who is good enough, and who isn’t?’” he continued.

“Then you look at the senior players — do they really want to stay? Do they have the hunger to remain here? That’s where you start building again. Give the manager time. Even if things aren’t going perfectly, show patience.”

“I believe he deserves that trust because he earned the points to keep the club in the Premier League. Spurs now need a period of stability.”

Alderweireld also stressed the importance of leadership within the squad, noting that it can take different forms.

“You can have a leader who shouts and motivates, but to me, leadership means consistently performing at a solid level — being a seven out of ten every week, sometimes an eight or nine, but never dropping to a four,” he explained.

“The team must be able to rely on its spine — the centre-backs, defensive midfielder, and goalkeeper. That part of the squad has to be strong and dependable. Look at Arsenal: their spine is excellent, and that’s why they achieve good results.”

Alderweireld also shared his excitement about following the Belgian national team at the upcoming World Cup. He was part of the Belgian side that reached the semi-finals in 2018 after a memorable quarter-final victory over Brazil.

“That was an incredible match,” he recalled. “Before that, people always called us the golden generation, but we hadn’t won a truly big game. That quarter-final against Brazil was one of the best moments of my career and a historic night for Belgium.”

When asked if there were any regrets about the semi-final defeat to France, which ended 1-0, Alderweireld reflected, “Whoever wins deserves it, but in terms of football, I think we played better overall. France won, so they deserve the title, but I’ll always feel like we could have had a little bit more. Reaching the semi-finals was a huge achievement, but it still feels a bit bittersweet.”

Alderweireld spoke in partnership with BOYLE Sports 2 Goals Ahead, a promotion that allows fans to place a bet on a team, and if that team leads by two goals at any point during a 90-minute match (for example, 2-0, 3-1, or 4-2), BOYLE Sports will immediately pay out as a winning bet regardless of the final result.