Tottenham Humbled by Brentford as De Zerbi Admits Team Needs Time
Tottenham’s new era under Roberto De Zerbi began with a jolt, a 3-0 defeat at Brentford exposing every fault line the Italian has been warning about.
At the Gtech Community Stadium, Spurs were not just beaten. They were overrun. Outfought. Out-thought. A side tipped to spend more than £300m this summer and desperate to move on from last season’s flirtation with relegation instead looked like a group of strangers.
De Zerbi did not sugarcoat it.
“We are not a team yet for a lot of reasons,” the Tottenham manager said. “Before you become a team you can’t say what you can do.”
He pointed to tired legs and a muddled build-up to the campaign. Some players returned late from the World Cup. A pre-season tour of Australia left him unhappy with the work done. The verdict on their conditioning was brutal.
“We are not in the right physical condition for a lot of reasons,” he said. “In Australia we don’t work in the right way but it is not excuses. It is a normal situation when building a new project.”
Normal or not, Brentford exposed it ruthlessly.
Brentford ruthless, Spurs limp
Keith Andrews, starting his second season in charge of Brentford, watched his side dismantle Tottenham with a clarity and intensity the visitors never matched.
Keane Lewis-Potter struck, Vitaly Janelt added another, and Michael Kayode completed the scoring. Every goal felt like a verdict on Spurs’ softness without the ball.
De Zerbi was furious with the lack of resistance.
“We could fight stronger than we did today,” he said. “We lost too many duels today. We arrived second in the second balls. We didn’t win one second ball, one duel, one tackle.”
That last line hung in the air. Not one tackle he felt his team truly imposed themselves in. For a manager who builds his identity on aggression and control, it cut deep.
Tottenham had new faces everywhere. Andy Robertson, Jan Paul van Hecke, Marcos Senesi, Mateus Fernandes and Sandro Tonali all made debuts. On paper, it looked like a serious rebuild. On grass, it looked like a collection of signings waiting for a plan.
Spurs are close to adding Omar Marmoush and Savinho from Manchester City to that attacking mix, but De Zerbi was in no mood to pretend the transfer window alone would solve anything.
“There are steps to become better,” he said. “Now the target is to become a team. You can’t become a team from the transfer market on paper. You become a team when the players find a connection, a spirit, a soul. It’s a project.”
Missing pieces, missing edge
De Zerbi did point to absentees. Pedro Porro, Kevin Danso and Micky van de Ven were all unavailable. Rodrigo Bentancur, who started on the bench, had returned late in pre-season and is still working back to full sharpness.
The message, though, was clear: he will not hide behind excuses.
“I don’t want time but we have to pass through these problems,” he said. “I cannot lose confidence in my players. I believe in my players, my club, myself. We are working well. We have to improve quickly.”
Quickly is the key word. The Premier League rarely offers patience, especially to a club of Tottenham’s stature, especially after a 3-0 opening-day defeat.
Sangaré shines as Brentford set the tone
While Spurs searched for cohesion, Brentford unveiled a midfield force.
Mamadou Sangaré, a £39m signing from Lens, delivered an outstanding debut. He snapped into challenges, carried the ball with authority and gave Brentford a platform to dominate.
“The club deserve a lot of credit for getting that deal done,” Andrews said. “You’ve seen today what he’s capable of, the attributes he has. It adds to a talented midfield. I really enjoyed his performance today. He’s slotted in really well. He’s a humble young man who’s very, very hungry.”
Hunger. Fight. Duels. Second balls.
Everything De Zerbi said his team lacked, Brentford had in abundance.
For Andrews, this was the perfect launchpad for year two. For De Zerbi, it was a stark reminder that a “project” sounds romantic in June but feels very different when the season starts with a beating.
Tottenham have the money, the manager, and the names on the teamsheet. The question now is simple: how long can a club of their size afford to wait before those names finally start to look like a team?
