De Zerbi apologises as Tottenham suffer second defeat in a week

Tottenham Hotspur manager Roberto De Zerbi apologised to the club’s supporters after a 2-0 defeat by Newcastle United exposed the same weaknesses that contributed to last weekend’s loss at Brentford.

Spurs had appeared more fluent for much of the opening hour at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, offering signs of the sharp attacking football De Zerbi was appointed to provide. However, two inexpensive goals in the second half turned a more encouraging performance into another damaging result.

The defeat leaves De Zerbi’s efforts to build a relationship with the Tottenham Hotspur fans under severe pressure. It was Tottenham’s 21st home league defeat in their past 39 matches, and thousands of supporters had left the stadium before the final whistle.

The Italian had written in his programme notes that he wanted the ground to become “a fortress”. Instead, Spurs suffered another setback only a week after a poor display at Brentford, where the final 3-0 scoreline arguably made their performance look better than it was.

De Zerbi acknowledged that the club’s substantial summer investment could not immediately resolve the mentality issues that have affected the side. Tottenham spent more than £300 million (R6,5bn) during the transfer window in an attempt to rebuild a squad that had finished 17th in consecutive seasons.

But the manager admitted: “you can’t buy [a winning] mentality in the transfer market”.

Speaking to reporters after the Newcastle defeat, De Zerbi said: “I’m sorry for the fans, for the environment, because after two defeats, maybe somebody can think it’s the same history, the same as the last two seasons.”

He added: “I have no doubt it’s not like this. I can’t change my opinion for two defeats. I have big, big confidence in the qualities of my players.”

Although De Zerbi continued to describe the reconstruction of Tottenham as a “great project”, his comments also appeared to leave open the possibility that he may not be the manager who completes it.

He said the squad would demonstrate its quality “with another coach or with me”.

The result was another reminder of the defensive and psychological fragility that helped make De Zerbi Tottenham’s third coach last season. Spurs showed enough attacking quality to suggest there has been progress, but their inability to maintain that level allowed Newcastle to take control after the interval.

Newcastle’s position is in stark contrast to Tottenham’s. Their unbeaten start to the campaign has eased concerns that followed the departures of key players Sandro Tonali, Anthony Gordon and Bruno Guimaraes, as well as manager Eddie Howe.

Wissa, who endured injury problems after joining Newcastle, has already equalled his league-goal total from last season. He said the players who remain at the club “have to step up” following a summer in which Newcastle lost several important figures.

Tottenham must now respond quickly if De Zerbi is to prevent a difficult start from becoming another season dominated by familiar concerns.