Micky van de Ven admitted it was humiliating for Tottenham to go into the final day of the Premier League season with relegation hanging over their heads.
Joao Palhinha's first-half goal was enough to keep Spurs' heads above water, as they beat Everton 1-0 at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
West Ham beat Leeds United 3-0 and would have survived had Spurs been defeated, but instead, the Hammers will join Burnley and Wolves in the Championship in 2026-27.
Sunday's win was Tottenham's first on home soil in the Premier League since December (2-0 versus Brentford), and only their third of the season.
That is the joint-fewest home wins by a team to survive relegation in a single Premier League campaign, along with Hull City in 2008-09.
But avoiding the drop will do little to soothe the fury of Tottenham's supporters, as they have finished 17th in back-to-back campaigns, the first time they have placed that low in consecutive seasons since a run of three from 1912-13 to 1914-15 (17th, 17th, 20th).
"I think everyone was behind us today and we played with 12 men on the pitch," a relieved Van de Ven told BBC Match of the Day after full-time.
"Everton were unbelievable, they kept pushing us and we needed to defend, but [the fans] kept pushing, I think they were a massive part of the win."
Asked if he felt embarrassed about Spurs' campaign, he added: "It is unacceptable that the last game we played this season, we were playing for relegation.
"This club has some unbelievable players. It was embarrassing to let it come to the final day, but we did it and that is what is important.
"I was emotional at the final whistle, it has been a tough season for me personally as well.
"I played almost every game and I have suffered a lot. The emotions are really happy, but we must not let it happen again."
Tottenham scored 19 goals from set-pieces in the Premier League this season, excluding penalties. That was their most in a single campaign since 1999-00 (20).
Palhinha's winner against Everton came from a corner, and his goals directly resulted in Spurs winning five points throughout 2025-26, the joint-most by any of their players (alongside Richarlison).