Following their goalless draw at Brentford on New Year's Day, Tottenham Hotspur were held to a 1-1 Premier League draw by Sunderland at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Brian Brobbey's late equaliser ramped up pressure on manager Thomas Frank, with Ben Davies' first-half goal not enough amid ongoing injury woes. Spurs sit 13th with 27 points from 20 games as fan frustration mounts.
Tottenham Hotspur's difficulties persisted as they were held to a 1-1 draw by Sunderland on Sunday, extending their winless Premier League run after the 0-0 stalemate at Brentford three days prior. At the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Spurs took the lead in the 30th minute through Ben Davies, who redirected Micky van de Ven's shot past goalkeeper Roefs after Cristian Romero's assist from a corner. Davies, on his first start of the season, netted his first goal for the club since December 2023.
Sunderland, under Régis Le Bris, grew into the game after halftime and levelled in the 80th minute via Brian Brobbey's first-time strike into the far corner, set up by Enzo Le Fée. Despite missing six players to the Africa Cup of Nations, the visitors stretched their unbeaten run to four matches and hold eighth place with 30 points, one behind fifth-placed Manchester United.
Tottenham's display was disrupted by an early injury to Mohammed Kudus, who departed after 19 minutes with a muscle issue—having started the midweek game. The £35m sale of Brennan Johnson to Crystal Palace earlier in the window left options thin up front, with 21-year-old Dane Scarlett as the lone forward substitute. Ongoing absences included suspended Xavi Simons, injured Dejan Kulusevski, James Maddison and Dominic Solanke.
Thomas Frank admitted the frustrations to BBC Match of the Day: "The first half was very good, I think we were totally dominant. Second half, not as dominant but we still had some good counterattack situations where we need to get more out of it." He stood by the Johnson sale: "Sometimes the decisions make more sense further down the line."
Home fans booed at full time, underscoring discontent with Spurs' form: just two home league wins in 10 and six draws in 20 overall. Sunderland's Le Bris credited his side's resilience: "They were not clinical, which was a good thing for us." Tottenham visit Bournemouth on Wednesday, while Sunderland host Brentford.
