Tottenham Hotspur entered the new campaign with the belief that this season would finally be different. After a series of disappointing starts in recent years, the club appointed a manager with a solid track record in the Premier League and handed him a transfer budget that exceeded £300 million – the largest sum ever allocated by the North London side. The expectation was that experience combined with financial firepower would translate into immediate improvement.
Reality, however, has been starkly different. After five league fixtures, Spurs find themselves rooted to the bottom of the table, a position they have not occupied for 18 years.
Their only goals have come from two consolation strikes in a lacklustre defeat to Aston Villa over the weekend, underscoring a season that has started in crisis mode. The table does not tell the whole story.
In the Villa match, Tottenham created several decent chances in the first half. Had they converted any of those opportunities, the team could have headed into the three‑week international break with a sliver of optimism and a quieter media narrative. Instead, two points from five games and a woeful record in front of goal have kept the criticism focused squarely on the club.
While five games is a small sample, the pattern of inconsistency is not new. This is the third consecutive season in which Tottenham has struggled to string together positive results. The side has amassed just 18 points in the calendar year 2026, and since the start of the 2024‑25 campaign they sit a point behind a West Ham team that was relegated at the end of the previous season. Since November 2024 the stadium has witnessed more concerts – notably a series of Beyoncé performances – than home victories.
Roberto De Zerbi, who was given a relatively free hand in the summer market, cannot escape scrutiny for long. The manager received a near‑unlimited budget and, apart from a high‑profile left‑winger, secured most of the players he targeted. Before the Villa game he admitted that he would have preferred a different approach to the summer window, but financial‑fair‑play constraints forced the club to retain a few players who had been earmarked for sale. That explanation does little to soften the criticism when the club’s outlay has been so massive.
One of the departures, Luka Vuskovic, has flourished at Brighton, while his replacement, Jan Paul van Hecke, struggled in the Villa defeat – he was dribbled past three times and was largely responsible for the second, disastrous goal. The notion that money alone can reverse a downward trajectory is naive; after finishing 17th in back‑to‑back seasons, Spurs need a fundamental change in direction, not just a shopping spree. The summer signings list reads like a catalogue of high‑profile purchases: Sandro Tonali from Newcastle for around £100 million, Savio Mendes 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 a free from Burnley, Andy Robertson on a free from Liverpool, Marcos Senesi on a free from Bournemouth, and Omar Marmoush on loan from Manchester City. Despite the size of the investment, supporters expected more, especially from a coach praised for his man‑management and his ability to get the best out of his squad during his tenure at Brighton.
Even a single win could lift Tottenham out of the current quagmire, and the next test against a pressure‑laden Manchester United side on October 10 will be a crucial barometer. Yet several deeper issues need addressing beyond simply collecting three points. De Zerbi’s frustration was evident after the Villa loss when he criticised the team’s leadership, pointing out that the club’s "leaders have to be leaders" in crucial moments.
The incident began when Micky Van de Ven was forced off with injury and Andy Robertson inadvertently set up the opposition’s chance. De Zerbi questioned whether his squad possesses enough genuine leaders.
Earlier in the month he had named a five‑man leadership group – Van de Ven, Pedro Porro, Ben Davies, James Maddison and Archie Gray – but none of those players are widely recognised as natural, vocal captains who can rally teammates by sheer presence. The criticism of Spurs being "Spursy" – a term that has evolved to describe chronic under‑performance – is now more relevant than ever. The team has not won a league match when conceding first for almost two years and has managed only nine draws from losing positions in the same period. Cristian Romero’s departure in the summer was justified by his tendency to over‑step with aggression, leaving a defensive void that has yet to be filled.
The loss of combative midfielder João Palhinha, who De Zerbi openly wanted to retain, compounds the problem. The coach admitted after the Villa defeat that he has never seen a team as "fragile and inconsistent" as his in 14 years of coaching, highlighting the depth of the issue.
The fanbase, accustomed to seeing such inconsistency, will be watching closely. Even without Palhinha, De Zerbi cannot blame the midfield entirely given the near‑£200 million spent on Tonali and Fernandes. Tonali, fresh from a World Cup break, has yet to reach the form that made him a favourite at Newcastle and convinced Spurs to break their transfer record for him. The saga surrounding Richarlison’s future adds another layer of distraction, while the team’s goal‑scoring woes persist.
Last season’s top scorer remains on a self‑imposed exile, and Dominic Solanke has yet to return to full fitness. After the Villa game, De Zerbi seemed apologetic for Solanke’s performance, stating "he's much better than this Dominic Solanke." With Tottenham’s average expected goals (xG) per shot the lowest in the league and their total output only better than Coventry, the onus is on Solanke – or alternatively Omar Marmoush – to rediscover their scoring touch.
It is still early in this iteration of the Spurs project, and with more than half of the starting XI from Saturday’s match being new arrivals, some teething problems are inevitable. The sight of a table showing two points, two goals and Spurs lagging behind the rest of the league feels disproportionate, but it also reflects the magnitude of the challenge ahead. There remains a belief that things can turn around – the squad possesses undeniable quality and De Zerbi’s credentials are well‑known.
However, his previous tenures have often ended on sour notes, and the hope is that the decline has not already set in at Tottenham. Fans can catch the upcoming clash with Manchester United at Old Trafford when the Premier League resumes on October 10, live on Sky Sports Premier League and Main Event from 4.30 pm (kick‑off 5.30 pm).