Forest’s 3-0 victory at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium last March gave the visitors a crucial foundation for their fight against relegation, while Spurs continued to struggle until the final day.
Tottenham have since invested more than £300m in new talent, forming part of the Premier League’s record £3.49bn summer spending total.
New arrivals Sandro Tonali, Jon Paul Van Hecke, Savio and Omar Marmoush were all named in Saturday’s starting line-up, while De Zerbi remained composed despite another failure to score.
De Zerbi said the club had recruited several excellent players, but warned that assembling a successful team required more than simply collecting famous names, as might happen in a football management game.
He expressed frustration with the result but satisfaction with the display, particularly because the squad had only begun working together for the first time on Thursday.
The coach acknowledged that the team must improve every aspect of its game, including its organisation both in and out of possession, although he felt the defensive performance was strong.
He also believed his players used the ball effectively and regularly found solutions, but said there was considerable room for improvement in the attacking third.
De Zerbi was unhappy with Tottenham’s decision-making, highlighting a second-half moment when Marmoush fired over despite Andy Robertson making an overlapping run and Mohammed Kudus being available for a simple finish at the far post.
The former Brighton coach recognised plenty of encouraging signs, but admitted his players must become more composed.
He felt the overall performance was positive, though the team needed to make smarter choices and remain calmer when approaching potentially decisive moments.
Referring to Marmoush’s opportunity, he explained that passing to the overlapping Robertson could have created a straightforward scoring chance for Kudus at the back post.
De Zerbi praised his side’s attitude and organisation, adding that they dealt well with their opponents’ direct approach and won many of the battles for second balls.
Although disappointed not to secure victory, he noted that earning a point at the stadium was difficult and described the performance as a positive foundation for the team’s progress.
The result was Tottenham’s eighth league draw of the year, their highest total in a calendar year since 2020. They also failed to register a shot on target in a top-flight fixture for the first time since facing Brentford under Antonio Conte in April 2022.
Spurs have attempted 38 shots in the league this season and recorded an expected-goals figure of 3.3, with former midfielder Danny Murphy sharing De Zerbi’s view about what the visitors were missing.
Murphy observed that Spurs often hurried their actions after reaching promising positions, choosing to shoot when a pass may have been the better option.
He added that they frequently selected the wrong pullback or cross from wide areas and sometimes tried to beat one opponent too many after already creating space.
In his view, the team lacked the calmness and control normally associated with elite players.
Murphy accepted that developing chemistry can take time, although he pointed out that Marmoush and Savio already know one another and that intelligent players usually adapt quickly to their teammates’ movement.
He explained that midfielders may initially find it difficult to predict a forward’s intentions, but those decisions become more instinctive after playing together regularly, allowing partnerships to develop naturally.
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