Tottenham's Summer Tour Kicks Off in Auckland with De Zerbi
Tottenham’s long-haul summer starts in Auckland on Sunday, but this is no gentle stretch of the legs. Not after a £200million rebuild. Not with Roberto De Zerbi pacing the technical area for the first time in front of travelling fans.
Eden Park, more used to rugby collisions than Premier League intrigue, is set for a record crowd as Auckland FC welcome a Spurs side trying to look and feel very different from the one that has limped to back-to-back 17th-place finishes in the League. The stakes are low on paper. The scrutiny is not.
De Zerbi steps into the spotlight
Spurs have already had a quiet dress rehearsal. A 1-0 win over MK Dons in a behind-closed-doors friendly on Wednesday eased them into pre-season, but that was for staff and analysts. This is for the supporters who have crossed the world to see what De Zerbi is building.
They will get a first proper look at a squad reshaped at speed and at cost. Six signings, more than £200m spent, and a clear message from the board: survival is no longer enough.
Argentina centre-back Marcos Senesi, the only new arrival not to make the 35-man travelling party, stays behind. Everyone else is here. Sandro Tonali, Mateus Fernandes, Andy Robertson, Jan Paul van Hecke and Martin Dubravka have all boarded the plane and are expected to feature at some stage across the tour.
De Zerbi is likely to split his resources again, with one XI in the first half and another after the break. Pre-season minutes matter, but so does making early sense of his options.
Big names missing, big questions looming
The tour begins without several familiar faces. Guglielmo Vicario has not travelled after what the club have called a “minor knock”, while midfield pair Pape Matar Sarr and Rodrigo Bentancur have been granted extended leave following their World Cup exertions.
Those who went deepest in that tournament are absent too. Pedro Porro, Cristian Romero and Djed Spence have all stayed at home, their summers stretched out a little longer.
For Vicario and Romero, there is a sharper edge to the uncertainty. Both are heavily linked with moves away and it is not yet clear whether they have already played their last games in a Spurs shirt. Their absence is medical and logistical for now, but the transfer market is humming in the background.
Mohammed Kudus, Dejan Kulusevski, Xavi Simons and Wilson Odobert remain at Hotspur Way, each still working through rehabilitation from long-term injuries. They are part of the project, just not this leg of the journey.
Chance for the kids on the far side of the world
All those gaps in the squad open doors. De Zerbi has brought youth with him and intends to use it.
Luca Williams-Barnett, who caught the eye against MK Dons, is one of the youngsters who now step into the light. Mikey Moore is another. For players like them, Eden Park is not a pre-season exhibition; it is an audition.
This tour, stripped of some of its established names, offers De Zerbi a rare clean slate. He can experiment with combinations, test attitudes, and see who can carry his demanding style in real time, under real pressure, in front of a full stadium.
Auckland ready for their moment
Auckland FC are no mere backdrop. They finished third in the A-League last season and will treat this as a statement occasion. A record crowd is expected, drawn by the lure of the Premier League and the curiosity around what Spurs have become.
Eden Park will be loud, partisan and proud. For the hosts, this is a chance to measure themselves against elite opposition. For Spurs, it is a test of how quickly De Zerbi’s ideas are taking root.
The predicted Tottenham XI offers an early hint of the new hierarchy and the new faces: Kinsky; Takai, Van de Ven, Van Hecke, Udogie; Fernandes, Tonali; Yang, Moore, Tel; Solanke. Youth and experience, old guard and new money, all thrown together in the southern hemisphere.
Kick-off comes at 4am BST on Sunday July 26, 2026. From Auckland, Spurs head straight to Australia to face Sydney FC and then London rivals Chelsea. By the time they leave this tour behind, the outline of De Zerbi’s Tottenham will be clear.
The question is whether that outline looks like a team ready to escape the bottom end of the table – or one still searching for itself on the far side of the world.
