Roberto De Zerbi says rival clubs were desperate to see Tottenham fail last season, a feeling he has repeatedly used to motivate his squad during the summer. He also defended the club’s significant investment in new players.
Tottenham’s spending is set to exceed £300m following several major acquisitions, including Sandro Tonali for £92.5m, Mateus Fernandes for £85m and Jan Paul van Hecke for £52m. Savinho and Omar Marmoush are also close to joining from Manchester City in deals worth £85m and £75m respectively.
After spending two seasons close to relegation and requiring victory on the final day to stay up last term, Spurs have invested heavily during their first summer window since Daniel Levy left his position as executive chair in September. De Zerbi arrived at the end of March with the task of keeping the club safe and was surprised by how eager their opponents appeared to be for Tottenham to struggle. He said the lack of support for the club’s improvement provides extra motivation and that his players must continue to remember the difficulties they faced last season.
De Zerbi was not surprised by the extent of the summer rebuild. The 47-year-old disclosed that he had spoken with club officials about potential signings in March, before his appointment became official. He considered it a decisive period for a side that had narrowly avoided disaster and clearly needed a new approach. This is Tottenham’s most active transfer window since 2013, when the £85.3m received from Gareth Bale’s move to Real Madrid was used to sign Erik Lamela, Christian Eriksen, Étienne Capoue, Roberto Soldado and Nacer Chadli. However, the £80m spent during that window is modest compared with this year’s investment. De Zerbi said the club needed to transform its atmosphere completely and provide the team with fresh momentum after two challenging campaigns.
Tottenham are not expected to stop spending, with further attacking additions anticipated as they attempt to build a squad capable of contesting the Premier League title and regularly playing in European competitions. De Zerbi dismissed criticism of the club’s expenditure, arguing that no team can compete consistently at the highest level without investing in players. He also pointed out that other leading clubs have spent heavily both in previous years and during the current window.
De Zerbi believes that once the transfer window closes, Tottenham should have a squad requiring few major additions for a considerable period. That stability would allow the players and staff to work together effectively, develop gradually and create something notable while moving towards the top of the table. Although he would not predict how quickly they could challenge, he expressed confidence that the squad can compete at any venue.
Micky van de Ven has been appointed Tottenham captain following Cristian Romero’s departure for Atlético Madrid, although an injury will keep him out of Saturday evening’s match at Brentford. De Zerbi has also formed a leadership group featuring vice-captain Pedro Porro, who is currently injured, alongside Ben Davies, James Maddison and Archie Gray.
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