Tottenham facing 'internal split' behind the scenes as Lewis family told to 'step up'

Tottenham Hotspur are facing the prospect of division within their board as they look to rebuild, having narrowly avoided relegation from the Premier League.

That is according to former Everton chief executive Keith Wyness, speaking exclusively to Football Insider, who believes that "clear direction" is needed from the top of the club to help drag the Lilywhites back into contention.

The North Londoners survived the catastrophic possibility of relegation to the Championship on the final day of the season, and will be desperate to avoid a similar outcome next term.

Wyness has called upon the club's Lewis family ownership to step forward and show a "public profile," as Spurs aim to get the fans back onside next term.

Roberto De Zerbi has a major project ahead of him to try to guide the team back towards the top half of the table in 2026-27.

The manager will have his full focus on trying to strengthen his squad ahead of next term, but Wyness is adamant that changes behind the scenes are needed first.

Tottenham at risk of 'mess' behind the scenes if clear messaging neglected

Everton’s former chief Wyness – who served as CEO at Goodison Park between 2004 and 2009 and now runs a football consultancy advising elite clubs – believes that Spurs could face a scenario where everyone "listens to different people" behind the scenes if the Lewis family do no truly take charge.

He has also questioned why they allowed non-executive chairman Peter Charrington to address the fans in a recent letter, rather than taking responsibility themselves.

Speaking on the latest edition of Football Insider's Inside Track podcast, Wyness outlined that he feels public presence from the Lewis family holds the key to Tottenham getting back on track.

"You need strong leadership from the top, I've said for many weeks that a club must come with clear direction from the top," he said.

"Otherwise, you start getting split camps internally, and that just leads to a mess with managers and sporting directors and everybody listening to different people and playing politics. 

"I hope the Lewis family start stepping up to the plate more publicly, which they need to do. I think leaving it to the non-executive chairman to speak recently was not a great move.

"So I think that the Spurs fans deserve to see leadership and public profile from the top, and that's what's going to fix the club going forward."

Vinai Venkatesham told to 'take the blame' amid sack twist

Wyness told Football Insider on Sunday that Tottenham's chief executive Vinai Venkatesham needs to "take the blame" for some of the decisions that have been made this season.

This comes after a recent statement in which the former Arsenal chief failed to take full responsibility for some of the failed managerial appointments.

Nevertheless, Wyness believes that, despite the pressure that he is currently facing from supporters, there is no chance of Venkatesham being sacked at Tottenham this summer.

Instead, he feels that the current board will try to repair and learn from their failings, rather than the club succumbing to another overhaul behind the scenes.