Roberto De Zerbi will be determined to secure Tottenham Hotspur qualification to European football this season.
Although Tottenham Hotspur have been embroiled in back-to-back relegation battles, Roberto De Zerbi will want to rub shoulders with the heavy-hitters at the top of the Premier League this season. The Italian guided the Lilywhites to safety at the end of last term, securing a place in the English top-flight on the final day of the campaign.
Having shown 'character' and the 'right spirit' in the face of adversity, De Zerbi now wants to take his squad to the next level. Speaking to reporters this summer, the 47-year-old said: "Last season, I think we reached the target of showing character, showing the right spirit.
"Now we have to push in the style of play, the quality of the play and the organisation -- this is an important part because now we are building our journey. To build a new team with the qualities for sure, but with soul, with patience, with all the values we have
"Because football now is not just on the pitch, it's not just with the ball, it's before, it's in private life. They have to be happy and proud to stay in Tottenham."
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So, with that being said, journalists at football.london have previewed the upcoming season.
Alasdair Gold
With each new season comes fresh hope, but in Tottenham's case it's more understandable than in recent years. Roberto De Zerbi has had an extended pre-season of sorts with his couple of months spent saving the club at the end of the previous campaign and that means he will have a head start on many of the new managers taking the helm around him.
Spurs have also spent £237million, breaking their transfer record twice, and the overhaul has seen plenty of players heading out of the door with a potential £213million to come back into the coffers. That gives the club even more financial fair play leeway to go big with attacking signings to ensure De Zerbi has a smile on his face come the end of the transfer window on September 1.
With De Zerbi's high energy football, the lack of European fixtures with mostly one game a week should leave the players fresh and ready to take on opponents who will be more disjointed or jaded. It also helps reduce the injury risk which has been a huge issue for Tottenham in recent years.
Every season you see a big club that missed out on continental football sweep up the table and take advantage of their freshness and Spurs and also Chelsea could be those teams this season.
I was telling my fellow Spurs beat reporters with a month to go of last season that if the club remained in the Premier League then they would finish in the top six, maybe even top four, next time around. So I guess I'd better stick with that prediction and go big.
Prediction: 4th
Jake Stokes
Tottenham Hotspur supporters have a lot to look forward to this season. I've been really impressed with Roberto De Zerbi's work on and off the pitch this summer. Not only has the Italian essentially rebuilt the squad from scratch and laid the foundations for an exciting brand of football in such a short period of time, but he's also embraced the club's culture and instilled a new mentality.
The last couple of years have been a bit doom and gloom, to say the least, so De Zerbi has been a breath of fresh air. If Johan Lange can get a top left-sided forward through the door before the transfer window shuts, I think the Lilywhites could finish in the top five of the Premier League and perhaps qualify for the Champions League.
Spurs should benefit from having fewer fixtures in the calendar this season. De Zerbi will have more time on the training pitch than the likes of Andoni Iraola, Michael Carrick, and Unai Emery, which will allow him to develop his ideas at a greater rate and potentially leapfrog the likes of Liverpool, Manchester United, and Aston Villa.
Of course, it will be a difficult task, and there will be bumps along the way, but I think the Italian has the tools to get Tottenham back into Europe. De Zerbi is a top head coach, and he's got some good players at his disposal.