De Zerbi can’t play the injury card at Spurs — time for points, not pleas

Let’s have it right: Tottenham didn’t splash north of £300million to be talking about mitigation in mid-September. Roberto De Zerbi has been backed to the hilt, and with Everton up next late on Saturday, Spurs need a performance as much as a result. Injuries? They exist — they always do — but they can’t be the headline act of a winless start.

Big spend, bigger expectations

Spurs are three games in and still hunting that first Premier League victory as they approach match four. The club’s summer spree wasn’t about laying foundations for 2027; it was about impact now. With De Zerbi hired to crank up the intensity and flip the mentality, anything short of a serious push for Europe will feel like short-changing a fanbase that’s paid for a fast pass to progress.

De Zerbi’s message vs the evidence

The head coach insists the team is in a better place than the run-in last season, even if the scorelines haven’t played ball yet. He’s talked up the group’s quality and potential while noting the knocks that have clipped their rhythm. Fair enough — belief matters. But belief has to meet method: sharper combinations in the final third, smarter game-state control, and a bit more nastiness in both boxes.

Injuries? Not the trump card this time

Context is everything. Tottenham’s current absentee list is relatively short — four, with James Maddison expected back for the weekend — and that pales next to the chaos previous regimes managed. Ange Postecoglou once had to lean on 18-year-old Archie Gray alongside Radu Dragusin at centre-back with a third-choice keeper in tow. Thomas Frank’s early Brentford years were a weekly roll call of setbacks. Neither had the depth or the chequebook De Zerbi’s been afforded.

Everton test: time to show teeth

Everton won’t hand you territory or time; you earn it. Spurs need to move the ball quicker through midfield, make their pressing bite again, and be ruthless with first chances rather than waiting for fourth or fifth. If Maddison’s fit, use his craft to speed up the last pass. Out of possession, set-piece discipline has to be non-negotiable — too many soft moments have bled momentum already.

If you’re having a flutter on the game, have a look at our best betting sites — but remember, Spurs can’t hide behind injuries anymore; points, not plaudits, are the currency now.

International break looming — and the optics

An extended international break is a long time to stew on a slow start. Go into it with a win and the narrative flips: De Zerbi’s patterns bedding in, the new boys settling, the table suddenly looking less grim. Go in without it, and the questions grow teeth — especially when the spend says “win now” and the results say “work in progress.”

The bottom line

No one’s calling for panic, but Spurs have to accelerate the evolution. The Italian’s had a full summer, a lavishly upgraded squad, and a clear mandate. This weekend is the moment to turn the rhetoric into reality. Save the medical bulletin for the physio room — the rest of us will judge by the scoreboard.