Tottenham Back De Zerbi Despite Record Low Start North London 2026

Key Points

• Unwavering Board Backing: Tottenham Hotspur’s hierarchy has no plans to dismiss manager Roberto De Zerbi, maintaining firm confidence in his project despite a disastrous opening to the 2026/27 campaign.
• Historic Low Point: Following a 3-2 defeat at home to Aston Villa, Spurs find themselves at the bottom of the Premier League table after five matches—their worst start since the 2008/09 season.
• Heavy Summer Spending: Despite investing over £300 million in new player acquisitions during the summer transfer window, the squad has collected just two points from a possible 15.
• Tactical Fragility: De Zerbi publicly condemned his team’s performance after the Aston Villa match, describing his squad as the most “fragile” and “inconsistent” he has ever managed in his 14-year coaching career.
• Internal Perspective: The club hierarchy views the situation as a long-term rebuilding process following last season’s near-relegation fight and believes premature sackings would be counterproductive.

Tottenham Hotspur (North London News) September 21, 2026 – Tottenham Hotspur have no plans to move away from Roberto De Zerbi, with the club’s hierarchy firmly convinced he is the right man to turn around their disastrous start to the season, sources with knowledge of the situation have confirmed to TEAMtalk.

We understand that there is no consideration being given to replacing De Zerbi, despite the pressure mounting on the Italian after Tottenham’s latest defeat at home to Aston Villa, which left them bottom of the Premier League following other results this weekend. It is the first time in 18 years – and the 2008/09 season – that Spurs find themselves bottom of the pile after five games of the new season, fuelling talk that another change is needed.

However, the north London club remains fully behind the 47-year-old, despite winning just four of his 14 matches in charge and with his win percentage rate at the club now sitting at an alarming 28.57%. One source explained to TEAMtalk:

“There is nobody better than Roberto to turn this around; this was never an easy fix, despite the summer outlay. He is very much still the man for Tottenham.”

Spurs were one of Europe’s biggest spenders during the summer after only just surviving last season, but their investment has yet to produce the expected results. They have taken just two points from their opening five Premier League games and now head into an international break at the foot of the table. However, there is also an important factor behind Tottenham’s continued faith in De Zerbi: he has actually only been in charge of the club for 14 games, and the belief inside the club is that the project was always going to need time.

Why are Tottenham Hotspur keeping faith in Roberto De Zerbi?

The Italian took over late last season with Spurs in serious danger of relegation and helped rescue them from the drop before being backed heavily in the summer as the club looked to build for the long term. The club’s hierarchy are therefore understood to believe it would be premature to consider a managerial change after such a short period in charge, particularly given the scale of the squad changes made during the summer.

TEAMtalk understands De Zerbi is hugely frustrated with the performances of his players and feels they are not currently operating anywhere near the level expected of them. However, Tottenham’s hierarchy are understood to share that frustration and recognise that the issue is not necessarily with the manager, but with the performances being produced by the squad.

There remains a strong belief inside the club that De Zerbi is the best man to get the results required to change the situation and that he needs time to work with the players following the significant changes made to the squad during the summer.

What did Roberto De Zerbi say after the Aston Villa defeat?

Tottenham’s latest setback came against Aston Villa at the weekend, with the 3-2 defeat leaving them bottom of the Premier League after five matches. The result has increased the scrutiny on De Zerbi, but TEAMtalk understands the club are not looking at alternatives and have no plans to make a change during the international break. Instead, the expectation is that De Zerbi will use the period to work with his squad and address the weaknesses that have contributed to their poor start.

The Italian has himself admitted that he is struggling to understand the inconsistency being shown by his team, delivering a remarkably frank assessment after the defeat to Villa. As reported by sports journalists across multiple outlets following the match, De Zerbi stated:

“In my career, 14 years as a coach, I’ve never seen one team like us. So fragile, so inconsistent.”

Those comments reflect the frustration within the Spurs camp, but they have not altered the club’s stance on his future. Tottenham invested heavily during the summer after a difficult campaign last season, and the hierarchy remain convinced that De Zerbi needs the opportunity to get more from the squad they assembled.

How have transfer analysts and football insiders reported the board’s decision?

As reported by transfer specialist Fabrizio Romano on his media channels regarding Tottenham’s internal stance, the messaging from within the club remains unified. Romano stated:

“Tottenham decided to back Roberto De Zerbi in the summer by trusting his ideas… The message from Tottenham, as of today, remains a message of confidence in Roberto De Zerbi. So at the moment I don’t have any indication of Tottenham exploring different ways.”

Romano further noted that the hierarchy understood the structural scale of the transition, adding:

“I’m told that Tottenham still believe in the manager. I’m told Tottenham knew it was going to take time. It’s not a switch you make from 17th in the league, saving from relegation in the final game of the season, to Champions League spots just because you spend big money. Tottenham knew it was going to be a process and it cannot always be fast.”

Concurrently, external commentary from former club figures has highlighted the financial scale of the appointment. As reported by Lewis Oldham of Football365 citing former Tottenham scout Bryan King, De Zerbi’s five-year contract signed earlier in the year complicates any immediate severance. King stated:

“I feel that there must be a clause in that contract where, if things went pear-shaped, that there would be a settlement for the amount of time he’s been at the football club… It would be very expensive if they were to part with him but I don’t think that’s on the agenda for now.”

Background of the North London Managerial Rebuild

The current situation at Tottenham Hotspur is the result of prolonged instability that culminated during the 2025/26 Premier League campaign. Following a series of tactical shifts and interim managerial appointments, Spurs slipped into a relegation battle near the bottom of the table late in the season.

Roberto De Zerbi was appointed in April on a five-year contract to stabilize the club and prevent a historic drop to the EFL Championship. De Zerbi successfully navigated the final fixtures of the 2025/26 season, securing Premier League status on the final matchday with a 17th-place finish.

Over the subsequent summer transfer window, Tottenham undertook an unprecedented overhaul of their senior squad, spending in excess of £300 million on international talent to align the roster with De Zerbi’s possession-based positional philosophy. However, the integration of multiple new starters, combined with early-season injuries and defensive vulnerability, resulted in a winless opening month.

The defeat to Aston Villa was compounded by a third-round exit in the EFL Cup against Liverpool, bringing additional scrutiny to the club’s defensive record. Tottenham Hotspur’s current tally of two points from five matches marks their lowest league standing at this stage of a season since the 2008/09 campaign.

Prediction: How This Development Will Affect Tottenham Hotspur Supporters and Club Operations

The decision by Tottenham Hotspur’s hierarchy to maintain complete backing for Roberto De Zerbi directly affects multiple stakeholders across the club’s ecosystem, most notably the match-going supporters and the playing staff.

For the supporters, the board’s patience signifies a refusal to return to the short-term managerial turnover that characterized previous seasons. However, this strategy risks increasing friction in the stands if immediate technical improvements are not visible after the international break. With fans showing visible discontent following the Aston Villa loss, the board’s decision requires supporters to accept potential short-term turbulence in exchange for long-term tactical identity.

From an operational and squad performance standpoint, the publicly confirmed confidence gives De Zerbi the security required to make firm tactical changes without the immediate threat of dismissal. The upcoming fixtures present a critical test of this process; failure to secure victories against mid-table opponents in October could test the board’s financial resolve regarding his long-term contract, while a stabilization of results would validate the hierarchy’s long-term strategic approach.