Tottenham Hotspur may be planning for life after Martin Jol, but the departure of Dimitar Berbatov, who was left out of the team for the 3-1 defeat by Newcastle United on Monday, would be an unwelcome development. The Bulgaria forward’s discontented body language has told its own story since he was informed that he could not move to Manchester United in the last week of the summer transfer window and he could seek a move away from White Hart Lane when the market reopens in January.

Jol, who appears to be a dead man walking, seems to be haunting his players and the manager’s problems could increase with Gareth Bale, the left back, awaiting the results of a scan on his right foot after a tackle by Gérémi in the defeat at St James’ Park.

None of this has come at a good time for Enic, the club’s largest shareholder, which is looking to sell the club on the back of strong financial figures. Last week, the club confirmed that it had posted record figures for turnover and profit, partly due to revenue from European ties.

Jol spoke with Daniel Levy on the return flight from Newcastle and is expected to meet with the chairman again today. Levy believes that his faith has not been repaid since he backed Jol after the flirtation with Juande Ramos, the Seville coach, in August. His manager could argue that he has not received his due after guiding the team to consecutive fifth-place finishes in the past two seasons, but he needs better results on the pitch. Even Jol’s most vehement supporters have been silent, or turned, of late.

Levy faces a delicate balancing act between leaving Jol in charge and possibly eliminating hope of a decent league position and qualifying for Europe for next season, or appointing a caretaker manager. David Pleat performed that temporary role twice in recent seasons but there appears to be no realistic candidates inside the club at present.

Jol has pinned his hopes on the return of Ledley King to solve the club’s defensive deficiencies, which have led to 21 goals being conceded in ten Barclays Premier League matches this season.

The Dutchman remains irritated that his demands in the summer for an experienced centre back went unheard. Yet the lack of a combative midfield player, or a leader, to protect the back four has also appeared an underlying problem. Teemu Tainio or Hossam Ghaly could play that role.

“There seems to be a steeliness, a desire not to be beaten, that’s missing,” Paul Robinson, the goalkeeper who missed the match against Newcastle through injury, said. “We miss Ledley. He’s a big influence on the team. Hopefully he’s not too far away, but whenever he’s there, he’s a leader just by the way he performs. We’re conceding too many goals. Sitting on the side-line, I can see things I’ve not seen being behind it [the play] but I’m not going to criticise my team-mates.”