Tottenham Nottingham Forest draw as De Zerbi backs Gallagher

"You know, I have experience enough to know what this stadium is. This stadium is England football." Roberto De Zerbi used that line after Tottenham's 0-0 draw with Nottingham Forest at the City Ground to explain why Conor Gallagher started ahead of Mateus Fernandes. Tottenham made three changes to the starting lineup, and Fernandes did not get into the first XI.

De Zerbi's selection call

The manager was clear that the decision was about the game in front of him. "Mateus will become for sure in my time at Tottenham one of the best players but I am lucky because I have many good players and I have to find the right first XI," he said.

Gallagher had only 2 league appearances this season, yet De Zerbi trusted him from the start in a difficult away match. His season rating stands at 6.45, which fits the case for a cautious selection at the City Ground.

Fernandes did come on later, but only in the 83rd minute. He had just three touches in that brief cameo, which tells you the manager saw the game as one that needed control and familiarity more than rotation.

Spurs still have no league goal

The draw left Tottenham with no Premier League goal in 2026-27 and kept the pressure on an attack that again failed to turn possession into anything decisive. De Zerbi said, "I think we played well but in the last third we have to improve."

He added, "We have to take the better decisions. We have to keep more calm when we are very close to doing something important in the last third." That was the bigger issue on the night, and it is hard to argue with after another blank in the league.

The manager's sharpest criticism landed on Mathys Tel and Mykhailo Mudryk. "He needs time, he needs work. In that position, we have Mathys Tel, big potential. But also Mathys takes too many wrong decisions, and Mudryk. So, two big players, two big potential players," he said.

Tel was replaced by Mudryk in the second half, and De Zerbi also said Mudryk "is not ready yet" and is still working to reach his best physical condition. Tel's 6.16 season rating and Mudryk's 6.49 are not the whole story, but they sit alongside the manager's point that both are still being managed carefully.

Tottenham are next in action against Everton next Saturday at 5.30pm, with De Zerbi still deciding how much trust to place in Fernandes, Tel and Mudryk after a flat night at the City Ground.