London Evening Standard

Roberto De Zerbi said he is only just getting started as Tottenham manager as he urged the club to avoid repeating the mistakes which left them in danger of relegation until the final day of the Premier League season.

Spurs were mired in a tense relegation dogfight with West Ham when De Zerbi signed as manager on a five-year deal with just seven matches left to be played.

He could not secure Tottenham’s top-flight status until the final day of the campaign, beating Everton 1-0 to condemn the Hammers to the drop.

Speaking the next day, De Zerbi called on the club to turn over a new leaf as they look to avoid getting caught up in another relegation scrap next season.

“We have no time. We have to organise the next season, we have to begin a stronger team.

“I am very happy and very proud of every one of us. What we did was incredible, but it is finished. Now we have to move on and to prepare the future of our club.

“I came in a difficult moment and I think it made us stronger. We can become better for sure - as a coach, as players, as a club, and we cannot make the same mistakes.”

He continued, saying he expects Tottenham to come back stronger next season as he revealed his recruitment priority heading into the summer transfer window.

“I love smart people, and the smart people learn from their mistakes. If this season was like this, it is because we made many mistakes. Sincerely, from the mistakes, we have to find the reason to improve, to work harder, and to understand the mistakes. Otherwise, we can’t compete.

“We have a great relationship with (sporting directors) Johan (Lange) and Vinai (Venkatesham), and the board, they have no doubt, but it is right. I came (to) plan a new project.

“From today we have to start to work. My target when I came was today. To arrive today (with Premier League safety).

“We are lucky to have a lot of good players, a lot of good guys, but I think we have to complete the squad in the best way, with the first level of players, the right behaviour of the players.

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Sport | Football

Lewis family promise change in apology letter to Tottenham fans after relegation battle

Spurs fan frustration has frequently been aimed at ENIC

George Sessions

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Your matchday briefing on Tottenham, featuring team news and expert analysis from Sam Tabuteau

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The Lewis family, majority owners of Tottenham, has vowed to rebuild trust with the club's supporters, committing to "meaningful change" after two consecutive seasons saw the team finish a disappointing 17th in the Premier League.

This pledge comes in the wake of a tumultuous campaign that saw Spurs narrowly avoid a catastrophic relegation by just two points, securing a 1-0 victory over Everton on the final day under Roberto De Zerbi.

The season was marked by instability, with the club cycling through three different head coaches.

Fan frustration has frequently been aimed at ENIC, the Lewis family's holding company, and chief executive Vinai Venkatesham, amidst a year of profound upheaval.

A significant shift occurred in September when long-serving chairman Daniel Levy was asked to step down, following an extensive review commissioned by the Lewis family earlier in 2025. Levy had been the primary decision-maker at Spurs for nearly 25 years, despite ENIC's majority ownership.

Daniel Levy

PA

During a letter to Tottenham fans, the Lewis family acknowledged they were “bitterly disappointed” with recent seasons, accepted ultimate responsibility for the current situation, but promised a rebuild had started and investment would bring about “deep” change.

The Lewis family letter in full

“To the fans, as owners of 25 years, we have lived the highs and lows of Spurs with you,” a statement from the Lewis family read.

“Finishing 17th this and last season does not reflect the stature or potential of this football club. We are bitterly disappointed and share your frustration.

“You, and we, expect more than this. We know this must never happen again.

“Our approach to running the club is, and has been, to trust the experts to do that, while backing them to be successful.

“The problems we found were deeper than we realized and were allowed to build over the last few years.

“We know that has eroded trust and we have to win that back. As owners, we take ultimate responsibility for the situation in which the club finds itself.

“We also take responsibility for rebuilding Spurs. Our ambition is to recapture the spirit of the club and bring back the excitement, the fearlessness and the bold football we have always felt defined us.

“That means football comes first. The Board and Executive team have laid out their plans to meet this ambition.

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“This will require investment – in our teams, the academy, our backroom functions and more – and we are fully committed to this.

“We are not selling the club. We are all in. We are investing in it. You will see more of this in the coming months.

“We care deeply about Spurs. The rebuilding the club needs, and you deserve, has begun. The change required is deep. It will take time and commitment, but change is happening.

“We know that actions will speak louder than words.”

A Tottenham Hotspur fan holds a banner in protest of ENIC Group, co-owners of Tottenham Hotspur during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Bournemouth at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on August 30, 2025 in London, England. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)

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Injuries have been an enormous factor in Tottenham’s last two seasons and a review into the medical side of the club has been launched by new performance director Dan Lewindon.

Lewindon is one of several appointments backed by the Lewis family over the last 12 months, with Rafi Moersen also set to join and start soon from City Football Group as director of football operations.

CEO Venkatesham was the first major hire by the Lewis family last April and even though the ex-Arsenal executive has endured a difficult first season at Tottenham, there is strong internal support for him, PA understands.

Venkatesham was forced to rebuild Spurs’ football department mid-season, but is now surrounded by several key figures.

“The club had some serious challenges that it needs to address on the football side. We know what those are. We are addressing them. We are fixing them,” Venkatesham told BBC Sport.

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Tottenham have reignited their interest in Savinho and are attempting to sign him this summer.

Standard Sport understands Spurs are back in for the Brazilian winger after coming close to reaching an agreement to sign him last summer, but the move never quite got over the line.

But now talks are taking place over reviving the move after Spurs survived relegation and Savinho fell further down the pecking order at City following the January arrival of Antoine Semenyo from Bournemouth. The fine form of Jeremy Doku and Rayan Cherki has also made minutes hard to come by.

Spurs pushed hard to sign Savinho last summer, but the Brazilian ultimately opted to stay in the northwest and signed a new contract in October which runs through summer 2031.

He spent this season on the fringes of Guardiola’s squad, starting just 14 matches and producing six goal contributions.

It was no great surprise, then, to see him left out of Brazil’s squad for this summer’s World Cup, with Real Madrid’s Vinicius Jr, Arsenal’s Gabriel Martinelli and a 34-year-old Neymar among the wingers preferred.

And Savinho may now look to greener pastures as he tumbles down the Man City hierarchy. The expected appointment of Enzo Maresca as the club’s new manager provides a further unknown.

Considerable player turnover is expected at Tottenham this summer after the club remained under threat of relegation until the final day of the season.

Speaking after Spurs edged Everton at the weekend to secure their top-flight status, Roberto De Zerbi said he only considered 12 members of his squad good enough to stay next season.

Transfer speculation already circulating Spurs days after Premier League survival was secured

Sam Tabuteau

COMMENTS

Your matchday briefing on Tottenham, featuring team news and expert analysis from Sam Tabuteau

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The dust has barely settled on Tottenham’s Premier League survival and attention has already turned towards next season.

Spurs are determined to move on from last season as quickly as possible, and Roberto De Zerbi has already called for wholesale changes to his playing squad.

The Spurs boss admitted after Sunday’s 1-0 victory over Everton that there were only between 11 or 12 players he wanted to keep at the club next season.

Non-executive chairman, Peter Charrington, then stated on Monday that the club would “invest across multiple transfer windows to rebuild, balance and strengthen” the squad, starting this summer.

Rumours have already started to circulate about who Spurs could try to sign in the coming months, with Andy Robertson, Marcos Senesi and Manchester City pair Savinho and James Trafford all heavily linked.

Marcos Senesi is reportedly set to join on a free transfer

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De Zerbi is keen to add experience to his squad and overhaul the leadership group which struggled with the pressures of a relegation battle.

Scotland skipper Robertson and Senesi have both captained Liverpool and Bournemouth, respectively, on multiple occasions.

The defensive pair, both available as free agents this summer, would also bring Premier League experience, having racked up a combined 447 top-flight appearances.

Reported interest in Senesi makes sense with the futures of centre-back duo Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven unclear.

Spurs have been in the market for a new goalkeeper for some time, with first choice shot-stopper Guglielmo Vicario heavily linked with a move back to Italy.

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The form of stand-in keeper Antonin Kinsky has complicated matters, with the Czech international recovering from a disaster Champions League debut to prove a key player during the run-in as Spurs secured Premier League survival on the final day of the season.

Still, Spurs have a longstanding interest in James Trafford, who has struggled for minutes at City.

James Trafford is of interest

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The England keeper will be keen for regular minutes next season and Spurs could yet make a move for the 23-year-old.

Spurs have been much improved under De Zerbi. However, their struggles in attack have continued under the Italian, with an injury-hit frontline managing eight goals in De Zerbi’s seven games in charge.

De Zerbi will be mindful not to make sweeping changes in attack, with Dejan Kulusevski, Dominic Solanke, Mohammed Kudus and Wilson Odobert all expected back from injury next season.

That said, Brazilian winger Savinho has been a key target for Spurs over the last 12 months and they could look to capitalise on a summer of change at City to bring the winger in on a cut-price deal, having balked at the £70million asking price last summer.

There is also a conversation to be had over whether Spurs make Joao Palhinha’s loan deal permanent.

Spurs hold on option to sign Joao Palhinha permanently

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De Zerbi is 100 per cent adamant he wants to keep Palhinha next season, while the Bayern Munich midfielder has said he would also like to stay in north London next term.

Spurs have a £25.8million option to sign Palhinha, who scored two crucial goals to help Spurs avoid relegation, on a permanent deal.

It is expected to be a busy of summer of incomings and outgoings at Spurs this summer.

So, here is how Standard Sport thinks Spurs could potentially line up on the first game of next season...

Potential Tottenham XI for next season: Trafford; Porro, Senesi, Van de Ven, Robertson; Bentancur, Palhinha, Maddison; Savinho, Solanke, Tel

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James Maddison described Tottenham’s injury woes this campaign as “astronomical”, urging Spurs to investigate the issue and find its root cause.

Former Leicester City man Maddison recovered from an ACL tear suffered in pre-season to come off the bench in Spurs’ last three games of the season, helping his side avoid relegation from the Premier League with a 1-0 win over Everton on the final day.

Fellow key player Dejan Kulusevski last featured in May 2025, whilst attackers Dominic Solanke and Mohammed Kudus both missed half of Spurs’ Premier League games due to injury.

Xavi Simons’ recent cruciate ligament tear was another major injury blow to Spurs’ survival chances, but now that Tottenham have secured Premier League football for next season, Maddison has called for a review of the issues.

Maddison shared: “Our situation with the injuries has been worse than any other club.

“People try and say, ‘Oh, but we’ve got this and that’. But ours is astronomical and we need to look at why that is.

“Sometimes it can just be unlucky, sometimes it can be a coincidence, like me doing my ACL or [Dejan] Kulusevski getting a horrendous knock off [Marc] Guehi.

“That’s not the medical team, that’s not the pitch or all the theories that you see, sometimes that’s rubbish.”

Maddison felt that Spurs would not have been involved in a relegation battle if they had not suffered from injury-enforced absences.

“We’ve been a bit unlucky,” he continued. “But like I said, the big names that we’ve missed, it does affect you and you can’t just deny that.

“Myself, Kulusevski and [Mohammed] Kudus, and [Rodrigo] Bentancur missed three months and whatnot. If you had had them for the whole season, we wouldn’t have been in this situation, I strongly believe.

“That’s just not me being naive, that’s just a fact. But it is the situation we find ourselves in, and I am just proud of the lads to dig deep today.”

Conor Gallagher has revealed his struggles settling in at Tottenham after arriving at the club in January.

The north Londoners have enjoyed somewhat of a resurgence under new boss Roberto De Zerbi, who has made the England international his starting No10.

However, Gallagher, the former Chelsea and Crystal Palace man, admitted to lacking in confidence in his first few months at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium

”I’ve not really been able to speak to anyone in the last few months,” he told Sky Sports.

“It’s obviously been really tough times for me and the team and I’ve just been so focused on trying to improve to help the team as much as I can.

"I was low on confidence, the last manager wasn’t having me, the fans didn’t think I was any good.

“I mentally dealt with that really well. I knew I could come back and show the fans what I can really do.

“Hopefully it’s only the start because I’ve got so much to give and looking forward to building an even better connection with our fans.”

Gallagher was signed by previous manager Thomas Frank, but he played just five games under the Dane, who was sacked shortly after his arrival.

Igor Tudor replaced Frank in the dugout, and Gallagher saw his minutes limited heavily under the Croat.

He played just six matches under Tudor’s short stewardship, but has found trust in De Zerbi, who has started him in every match of his tenure so far.

The last five of those came in a more advanced role in the Italian’s 4-2-3-1 shape, with Spurs missing the creativity of the injured Xavi Simons and James Maddison.

Spurs narrowly avoided relegation on Sunday, the final day of the season, by beating Everton in what was just their third home league win of the entire campaign. It saw the club finish one place outside the relegation zone in back-to-back seasons, a staggering collapse from a team who had previously finished outside the top six just twice in 15 years.

The finger of blame has been pointed by some at Venkatesham and Lange, along with the Lewis family, who ousted long-time chief Daniel Levy last September. Minutes after the club secured their Premier League survival on Sunday, fan group Change for Tottenham protested against the Lewis family, and the club board.

In an open letter to supporters, Peter Charrington, non-executive chairman, said the ownership are “committed to this leadership group and will give them the stability and support they need to run this club in the right way”, though confirmed that new appointments were incoming.

Head coach Roberto De Zerbi on Sunday after beating Everton said a maximum of 12 players from the current squad are “good enough” to stay, clearly stating a desire to transform the squad. Transfer interest in experienced defensive pair Marcos Senesi and Andy Robertson is real and could become the first two new arrivals of a busy summer.

Charrington outlined a five-point plan to get the club “back were we belong”, which includes building a squad “with the right blend of experience, youth and leadership”, backed being investment “across multiple transfer windows to rebuild, balance and strengthen, with this summer representing an important first step in that work.” Similar investment will be made in the academy and women’s team.

Charrington has thanked the fans, who he describes as being “built different” for their support this season, and says, in De Zerbi, the club now have a manager with the ambition to match the club’s moving forward, and again underlined how the club is not for sale.

The open letter read: “On Sunday, despite a season that gave you so little, you gave everything. A full stadium, full voice, full belief, until the final whistle. I have thought carefully about how to begin this letter, and in the end that moment said it better than I can. It is why we owe you honesty about where we have fallen short, and what we are committed to now.

“Last September, we recognised that something seismic had to change at Spurs. The Lewis family stepped in and authorised a full reset. That decision was not taken lightly, and it came later than it should have. But what has been put in motion is real, and it marks a genuine break from what had come before.

“As part of that process, we discovered some uncomfortable truths. The qualities that make Spurs distinct, our football, our ambition, the connection between the team and its supporters, had been allowed to fade. Football success had not been driving our decisions. We did not have the right expertise in key roles. We did not build squads good enough to compete in the most demanding league in the world. Two 17th place finishes in a row is not acceptable, and we will not dress it up as anything other than falling well short of what this Club expects.”

He added: “There has been speculation about ownership and the future direction of the Club. Let us be direct. Tottenham Hotspur is not for sale. The Lewis family are wholly committed to this Club and to this rebuild. They will provide the stability and investment needed at every level to move us forward, and they see that as a long-term responsibility, not a short-term fix.

“This season fell well short of what Tottenham Hotspur demands. We must be in the fight with the best teams in this league, every season, and we are rebuilding this Club with that standard in mind.

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Roberto De Zerbi saves Spurs but a long summer of soul-searching still lies ahead

Celebrations: Joao Palhinha is mobbed after scoring

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Sam Tabuteau

COMMENTS

Your matchday briefing on Tottenham, featuring team news and expert analysis from Sam Tabuteau

I would like to be emailed about offers, event and updates from Evening Standard. Read our privacy notice.

Tottenham will be playing Premier League football next season after securing their first home top-flight win since December against Everton.

On an afternoon of high tension on the final day of the campaign, Spurs started on the front foot and deservedly took the lead when Joao Palhinha scrambled the ball over the line after his initial header had rebounded back off the post.

Everton pushed for an equaliser after the break, but even after an agonising 11 minutes of added time, Spurs held on to consign West Ham to a place in the Championship.

Spurs secure survival on their terms

Roberto De Zerbi’s stunned expression following the full-time whistle said it all. Securing Spurs’ Premier League survival is his greatest achievement in management so far.

Taking a club as well-run as Brighton to Europe is one thing. Fabian Hurzeler has proved that such a feat was no miracle.

But taking over a dysfunctional heavyweight like Tottenham with seven games to go and without a league win in 2026, and dragging them to safety, takes guts, confidence and a remarkable amount of composure.

De Zerbi has shown another side to his combustible character to save Spurs from the embarrassment of relegation.

Job done: Roberto De Zerbi said keeping Tottenham up was his greatest achievement in management so far

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His wild celebrations when the full-time whistle blew were more than warranted. He has been holding back emotionally ever since he took charge and deserved his moment as Spurs’ players collapsed around him.

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Spurs will be playing Premier League football next season, but not before a summer of soul-searching.

Pockets of supporter protests after the game are not without their reasons, and those who hold the power in the boardroom have plenty to answer for.

De Zerbi will be chief among those asking the hard questions as he looks to build something sustainable at a club beset by turmoil in the last 12 months.

Palhinha proves man for the big occasion

Joao Palhinha may just be on loan, but even if he does not make his move to Spurs permanent this summer, he has left an indelible mark on the club.

The Portuguese midfielder has consistently popped up with big goals in big moments this season, but there is no doubt that his 43rd-minute strike on Sunday was by far the most important.

Reacting quickest after his initial header had come back off the post, Palhinha careered over to the home bench to celebrate with his team-mates as Spurs took a huge step towards safety.

Just as the nerves had begun to set in, Palhinha stepped up to send the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium into pandemonium.

If Palhinha’s winning goal against Wolves was the start of Spurs’ road to recovery, then it was apt that he should be the one to secure their survival.

They say never fall in love with a loan player, but De Zerbi is 100 per cent determined to keep hold of Palhinha. His performances over the last few months have been pivotal to keeping Spurs up.

Making his mark: Joao Palhinha has proved instrumental in Spurs avoiding a disastrous relegation

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Spence gamble pays off

Following Randal Kolo Muani’s ineffective display away at Chelsea on Tuesday, De Zerbi was left with little choice but to make a change at right wing.

Pushing Spence up into attack would not have been his first choice but, given Spurs’ injury issues, the Italian was left with no option.

It was a decision that paid off in the end, though, with Spence confident and direct in attack while also offering support defensively.

Buoyed by his surprise call-up to England’s World Cup squad, Spence played with a point to prove and was at times the furthest forward player for Spurs.

De Zerbi has been keen not to make too many changes to his starting lineup, which is why Kolo Muani has had more than enough opportunities to turn around his wretched form.

Supported by the imperious Pedro Porro, Spence ensured Spurs were able to keep the pressure on Everton in the first half before he dropped into a more defensive role as safety drew closer.

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