Tottenham Hotspur stepped back from the most humiliating relegation in Premier League history on the final day of the season, beating Everton to secure top-flight survival and consign West Ham United to the Championship — but the celebrations inside their stadium could not mask the scale of the club's failures.

The familiar strains of "Glory, Glory" rang around the ground as players and supporters shared a moment of relief, yet the mood was quickly complicated when fans unfurled a banner that read: "Promised Success. Delivering Failure. ENIC out." It was a blunt verdict from a fanbase that had endured a wretched campaign.

The sight of players pumping their fists in triumph felt jarring to many. Spurs finish 17th for the second successive season — a position that tells its own story, regardless of the last-day drama.

A season defined by bad decisions

The roots of the crisis run deep. Cracks papered over by last season's Europa League triumph were swiftly exposed once the new campaign began. Ange Postecoglou had been sacked after that European success, and the decision to appoint Igor Tudor as his successor proved disastrous. Tudor lasted just 44 days, departing after five defeats in seven games. Before him, Thomas Frank had been dismissed after only eight months in the role.

Chief executive Vinai Venkatesham and sporting director Johan Lange were both present at the ground for the final day, and their roles in those managerial appointments will face scrutiny in the weeks ahead.

The one decision the club did get right was persuading Roberto de Zerbi to take charge before the season's end, rather than waiting to see which division Spurs would occupy. De Zerbi acknowledged he had to operate as much as a psychologist as a football coach. Away wins at Wolverhampton Wanderers and Aston Villa, combined with Sunday's nerve-shredding victory over Everton, proved enough to keep the club up.

De Zerbi's ambition and a club reckoning

The Italian was a visible and passionate presence throughout the day — warming up the supporters before kick-off, engaging in a heated exchange with Everton substitute Seamus Coleman during the match, and being rugby-tackled by goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario after Joao Palhinha scored the decisive goal.

After the final whistle, De Zerbi was clear-eyed about the scale of the task ahead.

"It's now around 7pm, and around 8pm or 9pm we will start working towards next season," he said. "Next season we have to build a top, top, top team. We don't have to change too many players in our squad, but we have to bring in some first level players."

De Zerbi also offered a pointed remark about Everton's performance, suggesting manager David Moyes may have had divided loyalties given his connections to West Ham United, though he said he was sorry Moyes could not keep them up.

Defender Micky van de Ven struck a tone of cautious optimism, saying: "I'm really confident. With the right people now here — the right manager — I'm confident. Finishing 17th two years in a row is unacceptable for us."

Captain Cristian Romero made himself available despite recovering from a knee injury, setting aside a trip to Argentina to watch his boyhood club Belgrano face River Plate in the Argentina Primera División Apertura final. Whether Romero and Van de Ven remain at the club next season are among the pressing questions Spurs must now answer.

The bigger picture

Among those watching Sunday's conclusion were Vivienne Lewis, representing the ownership family, her son-in-law Nick Beucher, non-executive chairman Peter Charrington, and chief operating and finance officer Matthew Collecott. They were at least spared the added indignity of watching Spurs relegated on the same day that arch-rivals Arsenal lifted the Premier League trophy — their first title in 22 years — across the capital at Crystal Palace.

Injuries to James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski disrupted Spurs throughout the season, but those absences cannot fully explain a campaign in which the club — playing in one of the world's finest stadiums, backed by around £74 million from their Champions League qualification — came within touching distance of the second tier.

The relief is real. But so is the reckoning that must follow.