He scored on his Tottenham debut in a 2-2 draw with Luton Town at White Hart Lane. With Spurs, he won the UEFA Cup in 1984, and captained them to victory in the 1991 FA Cup Final. In the 1987 FA Cup Final against Coventry City, Mabbutt had an eventful game where he scored Spurs' second goal to put them 2–1 up but, after Coventry had equalised to force extra time, he scored an own goal to give Coventry a 3–2 win. This incident led to him being held as something of a folk hero at Coventry City, with a fanzine being named "Gary Mabbutt's Knee".