Tottenham went into the international break bottom of the Premier League after a 3-2 defeat by Aston Villa, a sobering position for a team that spent more than £300m in the summer. After five games, the club had only two points and two goals, turning what was supposed to be a reset into a sharp reminder of how quickly a season can get away from a big-spending side.
The result also extended Tottenham’s struggles to find consistency into a third consecutive season. At the end of 2024/25, the club had finished 17th in back-to-back seasons, and the hope was that a manager with proven Premier League experience plus a £300m+ war chest would change the direction of travel. Instead, the early returns have been blunt: the team is still searching for rhythm, still short on goals and still reacting to setbacks rather than controlling them.
What Roberto De Zerbi said
Roberto De Zerbi made clear that the problem is not just about talent or spending. His message was that the club's leaders have to be leaders in the biggest moments, and he added that Tottenham cannot lose games in this way. That is a pointed assessment, especially for a squad assembled with so much investment and expectation.
The challenge now is to translate that spending into something more reliable on the pitch. Tottenham were given room to shape the squad in the summer, aside from a top-class left-winger, but the performance level has not matched the scale of the outlay. The fact that one of their summer outgoings, Luka Vuskovic, is thriving at Brighton adds another layer to the story, even if the bigger issue is Tottenham’s own inconsistency.
What comes next
The timing of the break gives Tottenham a chance to reset, but the margin for error is already thin. The Premier League returns on October 10, and Tottenham are set to target Man Utd in what now looks like an important early test. For a club that has already spent heavily, the next run of games is less about long-term theory and more about proving that the season has not already drifted off course.
There is also a wider oddity around the club’s recent home form. Since November 2024, the stadium has seen more Beyonce concerts than home wins, a striking detail that underlines how far Tottenham have fallen short of expectations in front of their own supporters. That is the context for this international football break: a big club, a big spend and a very early crisis of confidence.
