Roberto De Zerbi has explained why the player who moved to Inter left Tottenham, saying he could not offer a guarantee of 38 matches as the club builds a more competitive squad. The comments came on the eve of Tottenham’s debut against Brentford, with the head coach using the moment to underline how much has changed in the past three months.
De Zerbi said it felt as though he had been at Tottenham for a far longer spell, even though only three months had passed. That short period, he said, has already been intense, and it has followed a difficult season that he described as a lesson for everyone involved. Now, with the club spending heavily and trying to shape a new identity, he believes the main task is to find an “anima” to the side and improve the organisation of play.
Why the player left for Inter
The key explanation was straightforward. De Zerbi said the exit was down to the internal competition he wants within the squad, and that he could not promise one player 38 matches. In his view, that kind of guarantee is impossible when a manager is trying to create strong competition all over the dressing room.
“That is why he went to Inter,” De Zerbi said, adding that he was sorry to lose the player and that he wished him well. But he also made clear that sympathy could not override the broader direction of the team. If a player wants certainty over appearances, he said, that is not something he can provide to anyone while the squad is being pushed to fight for places.
The message fits Tottenham’s current rebuild. The club have invested heavily in the market, and De Zerbi was keen to frame that as a positive sign. He described the summer as fantastic in terms of signings, pointing to players arriving with strong spirit and personality. For him, that matters just as much as raw ability.
A new project with higher standards
De Zerbi’s wider point was that Tottenham are no longer simply reacting to what happened last season. They are trying to construct a new project, and that means making difficult choices about who stays and who goes. The competition for places is not a side issue; it is part of the plan.
That approach also explains why he expects standards to rise immediately. He said the team must deserve victory, a reminder that spending money does not guarantee anything on its own. The performance against Brentford, and the response over the opening weeks, will tell the story of whether Tottenham’s rebuild is already taking shape.
There is also a wider squad picture to consider, with Tottenham’s transfer activity still being assessed through the lens of the new regime. Recent reports have already linked the club with other potential moves, including Lucas Bergvall Tottenham Transfer News: Roberto De Zerbi says he wants the 20-year-old to stay as Spurs could demand more than £60million, while Roberto De Zerbi Leads Tottenham Talks For Dubravka’s June 30 Move has also highlighted the scale of the rebuilding effort.
For now, though, the clearest message from De Zerbi is that Tottenham are building toward a more demanding internal culture. The player’s move to Inter was not presented as a falling-out, but as a consequence of the competition level De Zerbi wants in his squad. In that sense, the departure says as much about Tottenham’s new direction as it does about the player himself.
