Tottenham Hotspur entered this campaign with the belief that things would finally turn around. After a series of false hopes in recent seasons, the club appointed a manager with a solid track record in the Premier League and handed him a spending package that eclipsed any previous budget – more than £300 million, the biggest outlay in the club's history.
Yet, after five league matches, Spurs find themselves rooted to the bottom of the table, a position they have not occupied for 18 years. Their only goals so far have been two late consolation strikes in a dismal defeat to Aston Villa over the weekend.
The raw numbers on the table paint a bleak picture, but the performance was not entirely hopeless. Tottenham created several decent first‑half opportunities against Villa; had they been clinical, the team could have walked into the three‑week international break with a little more confidence and less media scrutiny.
Instead, they have managed just two points from five games, and their inability to convert chances has kept the spotlight firmly on the club's shortcomings. Although five matches is a small sample, the lack of consistency has now stretched into a third straight season of under‑achievement. Tottenham have accumulated only 18 points in 2026, and since the start of the 2024/25 campaign they sit one point behind West Ham, a side that was relegated at the end of the previous season.
Manager Roberto De Zerbi is under increasing pressure, especially after a summer in which he was given almost unrestricted authority in the transfer market. Apart from securing a high‑quality left‑winger, he obtained most of the targets he listed. Before the Villa game, De Zerbi admitted that he would have liked to approach the summer window differently, but Financial Fair Play constraints forced the club to retain a few players earmarked for sale. That explanation offers little comfort given the scale of the expenditure.
One of the departures, Luka Vuskovic, has flourished at Brighton, while his replacement, Jan Paul van Hecke, struggled in the Villa loss and was dribbled past three times. Money alone cannot fix a club that finished 17th in consecutive seasons. The summer signings – Sandro Tonali from Newcastle for around £100 million, Savio from Manchester City for £85 million, Mateus Fernandes from West Ham for £85 million, Jan Paul van Hecke from Brighton for £52 million, Tosin Adarabioyo from Chelsea for £10 million, Mykhaylo Mudryk on loan from Chelsea, Martin Dubravka on loan from Burnley, Andy Robertson on a free transfer from Liverpool, Marcos Senesi on a free from Bournemouth, and Omar Marmoush on loan from Manchester City – represent a massive overhaul. Yet supporters expected more immediate impact from a coach praised for his man‑management and ability to maximise limited resources during his successful stint at Brighton.
Even a single victory would lift Spurs out of the current quagmire, and they will face a similarly pressure‑laden Manchester United side when the league resumes on 10 October, live on Sky Sports. However, several deeper issues persist. In the Villa defeat, Micky Van de Ven was forced off with an injury, and Andy Robertson inadvertently set up the opposition’s opening goal. De Zerbi lamented that "leaders have to be leaders" in such moments, adding, "We can't lose games in this way." The question remains whether the squad possesses enough natural leaders.
While Van de Ven, Pedro Porro, Ben Davies, James Maddison and Archie Gray were named as a five‑man leadership group last month, none are universally recognised as commanding figures who can rally teammates by example. The pattern of "Spursy" performances continues.
In the past two years, Tottenham have failed to win any league game when conceding first, and they have managed only nine draws from losing positions. The departure of Cristian Romero in the summer, after his aggressive style became a liability, left a defensive void that has yet to be filled.
The loss of combative midfielder João Palhinha – a player De Zerbi publicly wanted to retain – has further weakened the midfield balance. De Zerbi admitted after the Villa loss that he has never seen a team as fragile and inconsistent as his Spurs side in his 14‑year coaching career. He can look to the home crowd for support, as the fans are accustomed to witnessing such struggles over the past two seasons.
Even without Palhinha, De Zerbi cannot point to the midfield as the sole culprit, especially after spending nearly £200 million on Tonali and Fernandes. Tonali, fresh from a World Cup break, has yet to reach the form that made him a fan favourite at Newcastle and justified Spurs breaking their transfer record for him.
The uncertainty surrounding Richarlison’s future adds another layer of distraction, while the team’s goal‑scoring woes persist. Last season’s top scorer is now in self‑imposed exile, and Dominic Solanke has still not returned to full fitness. De Zerbi seemed almost apologetic for Solanke’s muted performance against Villa, stating, "He's much better than this, Dominic Solanke." With Tottenham’s average expected goals (xG) per shot the lowest in the Premier League and a total that ranks only above Coventry City, the onus is on Solanke – or perhaps Omar Marmoush – to rediscover a scoring touch.
It is still early days in this new iteration of the Spurs machine. Over half of the starting XI against Villa were not at the club last season, so some teething problems are inevitable. Yet the sight of a league table showing two points, two goals and Spurs languishing at the bottom feels far more serious than a temporary dip. There is still optimism that the quality within the squad will eventually translate into results, and no one doubts De Zerbi’s tactical acumen.
However, his tenures elsewhere have often ended on a sour note, and fans hope that the decline has not already set in at Tottenham. The upcoming clash with Manchester United at Old Trafford on 10 October will be a crucial test, broadcast live on Sky Sports Premier League and Main Event from 4.30 pm (kick‑off 5.30 pm).