Tottenham's late-season collapse, culminating in the humiliating 5-1 defeat to Newcastle, prompted coach Mauricio Pochettino to publicly question his players, and the manager has stressed the need to improve the squad this summer.
Spurs are the only Premier League club to make a profit on transfers in the past five years and with a new stadium to finance, they are again likely to fund new signings, at least in part, by selling players.
Pochettino will have already made his mind up on some players but he could also base decisions on this summer's international football and his rigorous preseason schedule.
ESPN FC looks at five Tottenham players facing decisive summers:
Son Heung-Min
The £22 million summer signing from Bayer Leverkusen has struggled to justify his fee, and is already fielding questions about his Tottenham future. A foot injury in September didn't help and earlier this month, the forward was eager to emphasise that he still isn't fully fit. He completed 90 minutes just once in 28 Premier League appearances in 2015-16.
A summer of rest would do him good but he wants to play in the Olympics for South Korea and is waiting for Spurs to decide whether or not to release him for the tournament. Playing in the Games could be advantageous for Spurs in the long term -- if Son helps South Korea to a medal, he will be exempt from mandatory two-year national service -- but he would miss the majority of preseason and the start of next term, which will not aid his hopes of cementing a place in Pochettino's team.
Nabil Bentaleb
This summer is a chance for Bentaleb to start again. The Algerian was one of Pochettino's golden boys in 2014-15 but loss of form, injury and the rise of Dele Alli and Eric Dier restricted him to two Premier League starts, both in August, and just 168 minutes of league football in total. There were reports that Pochettino was not happy with Bentaleb's attitude but earlier this month sources told ESPN FC that Spurs have no plans to sell the 21-year-old. With Mousa Dembele suspended for the first four matches of next season, a strong preseason will leave Bentaleb with an opportunity to reclaim his starting spot after a year in the wilderness.
DeAndre Yedlin
The USMNT right-back made a solitary cameo last season and Spurs signed Kieran Trippier in the summer before loaning Yedlin to Sunderland. But he is still just 22 and his impressive performances at the Stadium of Light suggest he has a future in the Premier League, even if it is not at Tottenham. "I would not mind going back (to Sunderland)," Yedlin said earlier this month. "I had a great time there. I'll just keep my head down and perform at Copa America. Obviously if I can have a good tournament here it'll impress a lot more people."
A strong showing on home soil and a solid preseason could be the difference between remaining at Spurs or another loan, and being sold permanently.
Ryan Mason
Mason was a regular in Pochettino's first season at Spurs but knee and ankle injuries before October meant he spent the campaign playing catch-up, before deputising (poorly) for the suspended Dembele in Spurs' disastrous final two matches. Spurs have lost the past five matches Mason has started and his withdrawal at half-time at St James' Park did not bode well for the future. However, with the majority of his teammates on international duty this summer, Mason will get an opportunity to regain fitness and form during preseason.
Alex Pritchard
In summer 2015, Pochettino confirmed Pritchard was part of his plans for the coming campaign after the playmaker scored 12 goals and bagged seven assists on loan at Brentford, and was named the Bees' Players' Player of the Year and in the Championship team of the year. But an ankle injury in the Under-21 European Championship with England and subsequent surgery restricted him to just five minutes for Spurs and he joined West Brom on loan in January, where he didn't start a match.
Pochettino was less reassuring when asked about Pritchard's future in April. "I think he feels disappointed, we are very disappointed, too, but we will speak in the next few weeks," said the manager. Now 23, this summer is decisive for Pritchard. He must prove his fitness and impress in preseason or face leaving his boyhood club.