Tottenham Hotspur face their biggest match of the season so far when they travel to Manchester United on Saturday, as they look to kickstart their campaign.
Under the leadership of Roberto De Zerbi and with more than £300m spent on 10 new players during the summer transfer window, hopes were high that Tottenham were going to kick on and move up the Premier League table after successive 17th-place finishes.
It hasn't quite worked out like that though, and the pressure is beginning to grow on De Zerbi with the club lying bottom of the Premier League table after five games, with just two points and goals to their name.
United haven't had the strongest start to the campaign either and the Italian coach may well see an opportunity at the 'Theatre of Dreams', but he will be well aware that another underwhelming performance and result would ramp up the scrutiny on his position, even after half-a-dozen fixtures.
De Zerbi has already encountered his fair share of injury issues as Tottenham manager, not least this term when he has been unable to use the likes of Xavi Simons, Wilson Odobert and Dejan Kulusevski because of injury, while James Maddison hasn't been fully fit and Mykhailo Mudryk hurt his ankle after just one Spurs appearance and has been out of action since.
The 46-year-old would have been deeply concerned when it was reported that his first-choice centre-backs, Micky van de Ven and Jan Paul van Hecke, had picked up injuries while representing the Netherlands, although it has been reported by a reliable Dutch journalist that the issues aren't as bad as first feared and neither player has been ruled out of facing United.
Meanwhile, £100m record signing Sandro Tonali has started all five of Spurs' Premier League matches this season, although he did miss the EFL Cup tie against Liverpool with a muscle injury.
Tonali went off to represent Italy in the Nations League after the defeat to Aston Villa, although a minor issue flared up during his time away.
Still, he featured in all four of his country's matches, saying that he now feels '100%' fit.
He said: “Physically, I’m 100% now. The pain I was having has resolved. I’m ready to do my part. It doesn’t matter if I play as a midfielder or a playmaker, especially since the roles can vary depending on the match."
Waddle Unhappy With Tonali and Italy Situation
Tottenham legend Chirs Waddle has been speaking out on the situation, via talkSPORT Bet, who offer the latest sports betting, and believes it was 'bizarre' that the 26-year-old featured in all four of Italy's fixtures even though he had an injury flare-up.
I was surprised to see Tonali turning out for all the Italy games. He was injured, then suddenly he's fit. I found that bizarre.
"Listen, whether they thought it was just a slight knock and missing one game would be alright, that's fine. But they've had a lot of players away on international duty who will be coming back in the next two or three days to get back to work.
"A lot of these players, not just Tottenham's, have travelled around Europe or the world for three weeks, jumping on and off aeroplanes and buses. By the time they get back to training on Thursday morning, a lot of them will be feeling tired.
"A lot of these players coming back, especially those from South America or far away, might start training on Thursday with jet lag, and yet they're expected to deliver a top performance at the weekend. It's extremely demanding, and to be honest, these Nations League games are an absolute farce."
Tottenham's Upcoming Fixtures:
Manchester United away (Oct 10)
Coventry home (Oct 19)
Chelsea away (Oct 24)
Crystal Palace home (Oct 31)
Waddle raises a great point and, having been unable to work with a few of his key players during the international break, there will be added uncertainty to the starting XI De Zerbi is able to pick, and what sort of performance they produce.
United are in the same situation though, so it can't be used as an excuse, and the Italian manager needs to show sooner rather than later that he can galvanise the team and get them moving in the right direction.