It’s kitchen sink time Thomas Frank. Two wins in 16 games Premier Leaguethis tottenham hotspur Managers can’t make mistakes Newcastle United Tuesday night.

You can make that claim about Spurs’ long list of disappointments this season, but many supporters will tell you that Frank’s position has become untenable and defeat to the Magpies could heighten fears of a real relegation battle.

What a mess. Tottenham were the Europa League champions last year and advanced directly to the last 16 Champions League After a confident group stage, they finished fourth.

In addition, Tottenham have spent their share in recent years and finished 17th in the Premier League last year, but it is deeply worrying to find that failure is not an outlier.

With that in mind, Frank can’t afford to lose to Newcastle, even though Tottenham are dealing with a host of injuries.

Latest news on Tottenham’s injury issues

Tottenham Hotspur were active during the January transfer window, but ENIC Group’s business has done little to appease fans and glaring holes in attack remain unaddressed.

For example, after Brennan Johnson was sold to Crystal Palace for £35m, Mohamed Qudus was injured but no replacement winger was added. James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski were already out before the season started, and Richarlison also went down in January.

Frustratingly, that doesn’t even cover all the injuries, with plenty of Spurs stars currently struggling to get fit. At this point, Frank was undoubtedly feeling terrible.

However, fans will pay no attention to his outrage if Newcastle leave London with three points on Tuesday, as they have done on two of their past three visits.

The left side is an area of ​​particular concern, Destiny Udoji Withdrew due to new hamstring injury. The full-back is expected to miss a month of action.

The 23-year-old Udoji has been Tottenham Hotspur’s first-choice left-back since Anj Postkoglu’s arrival in 2023, and although the Italy international made a sensational start to life in the English capital, he has since struggled for form and consistency.

Losing him just weeks after recovering from his previous setback is certainly a blow, but it is also a golden opportunity for the new arrivals to show their quality on the Premier League stage.

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Ben Davies is currently out injured, which means Frank’s problems are even more serious. Andy Robertson could have stepped in and saved the day.

Instead, it may have to be Souza to relieve the pressure on the left, with the 19-year-old joining the Londoners from Brazil’s Santos in January for around £13m.

Souza bowed out in a baptism of fire in a Tottenham Hotspur shirt but held his own in tough circumstances at Old Trafford, with Frank saying the Brazilian “well done“On his debut against Manchester United, he created one chance, recovered two goals and completed all nine passes.

While throwing him into the deep end so early wasn’t the route Frank wanted to take, he had no choice but perhaps there could be some growth here, with Souza stepping up to provide his side with a way out while guarding the pace of Newcastle’s Anthony Elanga.

Journalist Tim Vickery knows South American football inside and out. Say it on talkSPORT The Lilywhites may have secured themselves a future superstar: “It’s a fantastic piece of business. I like him very much. He’s a good left-back. Physically strong, technical and a good footballer. He can defend as well as attack.”

Judging from Souza’s development in the Brazilian Serie A in 2025, this is undoubtedly an obvious trend. In his 21 games (19 starts), he has completed 85% of his passes, averaging 1.7 tackles, winning 57% of his ground duels and completing 55% of his dribbles.

Of course, Souza will find the Premier League a different beast – indeed, he lost all three of his games against Manchester United last weekend – but that’s not to say there isn’t a quality player there, someone with the balance and willingness to run that could make him a worthy replacement for Udoji over the next five weeks or so.

But Souza’s natural athleticism and skill set make him the perfect backup, more dynamic than Davis, who has barely played this year and lacks speed and improvement.

Of course, Udoji’s absence is a blow, and not just because it bolsters Frank’s depth on the wing. The Italian is one of the most dynamic wide defenders and is amazing in transition.

However, he “need to wake up” has been unreliable at times from a defensive perspective and has also become unreliable in terms of fitness. The 23-year-old’s development has been hampered at this point and that has been reflected in his performances in the Premier League this year.

Let’s not forget that Udoji has only created one good chance in the Premier League this season, failing 69% of his attempts with the ball.

Souza is young, but he certainly showed against Manchester United last week that he has what it takes to succeed in the Premier League, and considering Newcastle themselves are at a low ebb, his youth and energy could be just what the Lilywhites need to finally turn things around and inject some positivity into the club.

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