How did one of England’s most famous clubs find itself in the Second Division — and did Tottenham’s year outside the top flight ultimately help transform English football?
Season 5 of By Far The Greatest Team continues with Tottenham Hotspur’s 1977–78 promotion season — a story of relegation, recovery, final-day tension and the beginnings of a new era at White Hart Lane.
Jamie Rooney and Graham Dunn are joined by regular guest Stu Burgess to revisit a moment when Spurs were searching for a way forward.
The glory years under Bill Nicholson were over. Tottenham had finished bottom of the First Division in 1976–77, while the controversial sale of legendary goalkeeper Pat Jennings to Arsenal added to the feeling that the club had lost its direction.
But Spurs kept faith with manager Keith Burkinshaw.
With Steve Perryman providing the leadership and a young Glenn Hoddle revealing his extraordinary talent, Tottenham attempted to return to the top flight at the first opportunity.
They scored more goals than anyone else in the division, including an extraordinary 9–0 victory over Bristol Rovers, during which debutant Colin Lee scored four times. Yet a late-season wobble meant promotion remained uncertain until a tense final-day goalless draw at Southampton secured third place ahead of Brighton on goal difference.
Jamie, Graham and Stu examine the drama of the campaign while asking whether Tottenham’s promotion represented a convincing recovery or simply a narrow escape.
The story then moves into the summer of 1978.
With restrictions on overseas players being relaxed, Burkinshaw and Tottenham made the remarkable decision to sign Argentina’s World Cup winners Osvaldo Ardiles and Ricky Villa.
They were not part of the promotion team, but their arrival became the defining next chapter in the story that promotion made possible — changing Tottenham and helping open English football to a more international future.
Along the way, there are the usual football-history rabbit holes, including changing transfer regulations, wonderfully dated broadcasting and the cultural impact of two Argentine World Cup winners arriving in north London.
Finally, the 1977–78 Tottenham side faces the question asked of every team on By Far The Greatest Team:
How great were they?
Style of Play
Keith Burkinshaw’s Tottenham remained committed to attacking football throughout their season in the Second Division.
Glenn Hoddle supplied vision, creativity and technical class, while Steve Perryman provided energy, intelligence and authority.
Spurs scored 83 goals in 42 league matches and could overwhelm opponents when everything clicked. However, this remained a transitional and occasionally vulnerable side — ambitious, entertaining and rarely inclined to achieve anything the easy way.
🔑 Takeaways
- How Tottenham declined following the departure of Bill Nicholson
- Why Spurs kept faith with Keith Burkinshaw after relegation
- The controversial sale of Pat Jennings to Arsenal
- The emergence of Glenn Hoddle and the leadership of Steve Perryman
- Tottenham’s record-breaking 9–0 victory over Bristol Rovers
- How a final-day draw at Southampton secured promotion
- Why the signings of Osvaldo Ardiles and Ricky Villa changed English football
- Whether a team finishing third in the Second Division can possess genuine greatness
Join Us
Subscribe to By Far The Greatest Team wherever you get your podcasts and head over to our YouTube channel, where you can watch the show and discover additional football-history rabbit holes.
Visit the By Far The Greatest Team website for accompanying stories, articles, typical starting XIs and the growing Greatness Index as we continue asking:
How great were they?
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