Roberto De Zerbi Confirms Lucas Bergvall's Future at Tottenham
Roberto De Zerbi did not hesitate on one name.
“Lucas Bergvall, 100 per cent [he is staying].”
On another, he could not do the same.
Bergvall locked in, Sarr in limbo
Tottenham’s head coach has shut down any talk of Bergvall leaving this summer. The 20-year-old told the club before heading to the World Cup that he wanted a new challenge and more chances to grow as a number eight. Newcastle and Nottingham Forest tested Spurs’ resolve with bids. Both were rebuffed.
De Zerbi then backed up the board’s stance with minutes. Bergvall started regularly in pre-season, and that, the Italian says, has changed the player’s mind.
“We spoke a lot in pre season. He’s a top player, a top potential player. I like that he stays but I think now he wants to stay and we have no problem,” De Zerbi said.
The picture is far less clear with Pape Matar Sarr. The 23-year-old returned late from Senegal, only joining up in the first week of August, and now finds himself squeezed by the £185million double signing of Sandro Tonali and Mateus Fernandes.
“He’s a good player. I don’t know if he stays or not, we have to analyse the situation, but he is another very very important player,” De Zerbi admitted.
One young midfielder nailed down. Another waiting to see where he fits once the window slams shut.
Spurs spend big – and point upwards
The numbers around Tottenham this summer are staggering. With Manchester City duo Savinho and Omar Marmoush expected to arrive, spending could hit £377million.
This is the response the Lewis family promised after last season’s brush with relegation: “actions not words”. De Zerbi says the owners and board have delivered exactly what they pledged before he walked through the door in March.
“In my experience, they kept their word, they kept what they said before I came in March… I am very happy,” he said.
He insists, though, that this is not some vanity project built around the coach.
“What we are doing is not for the coach. It’s for the club, for the fans, for the history of the club, for the pride of the club, and for the level of the club.
“I think this moment is crucial for this club, because after two seasons like we had, we have to change the mood, completely change it, give it a boost.”
The plan is simple: load up now, then settle.
“When we have finished in this transfer market, for a long time we don't need many things and we can work all together in the right condition, in the right direction, to build step by step something special, or to go to compete for the top of the table.
“Not maybe now, or maybe yes, I don't know, but we have the squad to play in every stadium in the right way. Face to face, we know we have to improve. We have to become a team, but I think we also have all the qualities to do that.”
“Big potential” – but the pitch will decide
On paper, De Zerbi sees a group that can grow into contenders. He is not ready to declare anything before the window closes.
“Yes. Big potential. At the end of the transfer market, I will be more accurate in my opinion,” he said. “I have to keep the balance because sometimes the transfer market – with Tonali and JP Van Henke – we bring in a lot.”
Rival fans and pundits have lined up to complain about Tottenham’s spending, even though the club can point to stadium revenue and a projected £213million in sales and loans to help fund it. De Zerbi shrugs at the noise.
“I don’t know, you have to explain to me. For me, no pressure and it’s not a problem. I don’t know why the people don’t love if Tottenham becomes better. It’s one motivation more for us. Last season, all other clubs wanted to kill us. This is another part of football.”
He uses that resentment as fuel and makes sure his players do not forget how close they came to disaster.
“Every week we have to remember last season,” he said. “The last friendly game against Hoffenheim, the time before was against Everton. You can imagine the difference between that game and the game against Everton when we stayed up with all that pressure.”
So how close is this squad to the one he truly wants?
“On paper it’s very close. On the pitch we have to see and we have to work. I am experienced enough not to say too much. I’m very happy with the squad. We have to complete the squad but at the moment very happy.
“The answer I receive from the pitch has to be like my dreams and my thoughts with the board.
“Maybe we have to see on the pitch. To be honest, everyone, we are very excited but in the end the pitch speaks, as we say in Italian. If we start now with big words… we have to wait for the answer from the pitch.”
Then he leans into something more romantic.
“Football is a connection. Football is like magic. You can find sometimes the connection between players when every player thinks like the coach or we come together with an idea of football and the players who don’t start in the team are the biggest fans of the players who are playing. We have to create something on the pitch and off the pitch to compete like we want.”
Tonali, the £100m centrepiece
The most striking symbol of Tottenham’s new ambition is Sandro Tonali. A £100million record signing from Newcastle, the Italy international arrives with pedigree and expectation. De Zerbi thought he knew exactly what he was getting. He has been surprised.
“Sandro Tonali is better than I thought before working with him, as a player and as a guy. I know his family, his agents, and I know they all are good people,” he said.
“I’m very happy to work with him and I think he’s the right player in the right place. Especially because we want to put him inside of the project. He has the right qualities, the right personality, the right values, to stay in this place.”
Tonali is not just a marquee signing. He is meant to be the heartbeat of the rebuild.
No promises, only competition
There are 11 days left in the window. Some managers might tread carefully, tiptoeing around egos. De Zerbi is not one of them.
“Nothing [to do]. I love speaking clearly. Today is August 21st, I think every one of those players, they already know the squad. If one of them doesn’t want to accept the competition inside the pitch, inside the dressing room, they can leave,” he said.
“I try to be honest and to decide the better decision I can on the pitch to find the best first XI, but the players have to accept why because if we want to become better, if we want to compete for the top of the table, 11 players are not enough, 15 players are not enough.
“If you analyse the teams – Liverpool two years ago, Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City, Bayern Munich, Barcelona, Real Madrid, Juventus, Milan – the squad there has a big competition inside the dressing room.”
That is the standard he wants Spurs to live with. Relentless internal pressure. No comfort zones.
Pathways for the kids
The spending spree has not closed the door on youth. Mikey Moore, 19, is set to be involved against Brentford in Saturday’s Premier League opener, even as a loan move to Bundesliga side Koln hovers in the background.
“Now is not the right moment to speak about the last 10 days of transfer market. I think it’s not finished yet I said. I’m very happy with Mikey Moore, he’s working well, he’s a good player, I don’t know if he goes or not on loan,” De Zerbi said.
“I think he has a big potential for the club and we try to find the best solution for every player we have, also for Luca Williams-Barnett or Malachi [Hardy], two potential big players. Proud that they come from our academy. We have to manage them the best way we can.”
The message is clear: the pathway is still there, but it will be managed ruthlessly.
Rediscovering the “soul” of Tottenham
De Zerbi has also turned to the past to shape the future. He arranged for a group of club legends – including Glenn Hoddle, Gary Mabbutt and Steve Perryman – to speak to his players about what Tottenham really is.
“The players and especially the foreign players, they have to understand the level of this club. Even if we finish two seasons in a row in 17th position, nothing changes and the level of the club can’t change because in the last two seasons it was not great,” he said.
“The legends, I think they can explain better than me or better than you what Tottenham has been [before] in the Premier League and in Europe.”
There was, however, one notable absence that left the Italian a little frustrated.
“I’m sorry I didn’t see Chris Waddle,” he admitted. “Chris Waddle was one of my favourite players when I was a kid and he played in Marseille.
“In Marseille I said the same like this and Waddle would have been good for Kudus, for Kulusevski, for Xavi Simons, for Mathys [Tel] because he was a great player.”
Big money, big names, big ideas. A club trying to drag itself from the memory of 17th place to the edge of the elite again.
Now, as De Zerbi keeps reminding everyone, the talking stops. The pitch speaks.
