Spurs didn't need to suffer total humiliation on Tuesday night to underline the point that the squad rebuild which began in earnest over the summer must continue if they are to salvage their season and, indeed, the seasons to come.
But suffer total humiliation they did, being on the receiving end of the biggest ever margin of defeat by an English team at home in any European competition against Bayern Munich.
Over the summer, the club broke a 500-day dry spell to bring in a host of players, including some of their most coveted targets: Tanguy Ndombele and Ryan Sessegnon were joined by the loan-with-an-option signing of Giovani Lo Celso from Real Betis.
But one target that eluded them following what turned out to be a frantic pursuit and false dawn was Juventus' dynamic number 10, the Argentine forward Paulo Dybala.
Like rivals Manchester United, Spurs ultimately were frustrated in their attempts to sign Dybala by the player's image rights being owned by a third party, as well as his apparent £350,000 per week wage demands.
By all accounts, Spurs were ready and willing to smash their transfer record to bring in the forward, only weeks after Ndombele had seized that particular milestone for himself.
If Spurs are to prove they mean business, both domestically and in Europe, then Dyabala is exactly the quality of player they must go back in for when the transfer window opens again in three short months.
And financial information emerging from Juventus suggests there's every reason Spurs should be back in for the Argentine, the Old Lady having serious financial questions hanging over its head.
On the back of Juve's strategy to completely revamp its squad in the last few seasons, the Turin side's net debt up to the end of 2018/19 - this being total liabilities minus cash at hand - has spiralled from €310million to €464million in only 12 months.
Juve have spent huge sums on the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Gonzalo Higuain, Matthijs de Ligt, Douglas Costa and Federico Bernardeschi since 2016, with the club burning through cash and accumulating debt at an alarming rate.
Dybala himself cost a relatively cheap-looking €32million from Palermo back in 2015.
Having indebted themselves to the tune of €175million earlier this year via a bond offering - akin to the kind Spurs themselves arranged in the US to refinance their stadium debt - Juve's latest strategy is to raise an additional €300milliion via a share issue.
The question will be put forward for final vote at the club's annual general meeting later this month.
Clearly, cash is key in Turin right now. If the share issue fails to materialise or falls short, then monetising their assets may have to be the solution.
A €72million bid for Dybala would clearly raise interest in Turin, especially from their shareholders - and the forward is in something of a quandary regardless of the club's financial difficulties.
If Maurizio Sarri's opening matches are anything to go by, then one of Dybala, Ronaldo and Higuain looks set to be consigned to the bench on matchdays, with the Italian unwilling to fit all three into his current tactical set-up.
Facing further competition from Bernardeschi, Costa, Juan Cuadrado and Mario Mandzukic, Dyabala - who assisted Ronaldo in Tuesday night's Champions League mauling of Bayer Leverkusen - may be looking for an exit before long.
