Tottenham go into the international break with two points from five league games, bottom of the Premier League and still waiting for their £300million summer rebuild to produce a proper response. The latest setback was the 2-3 home defeat to Aston Villa, and the pressure on Roberto De Zerbi is already building.

The start has been too slow

Tottenham are winless after five league games, and that alone is hard to dress up. The club have not scored in their first four league games for the first time in history, which is a brutal marker for a squad that cost more than £300million over the summer.

There is a case for saying the performances have been a touch better than the results, but the points total is still only two and the table has them 20th. De Zerbi said Spurs have been better than their results suggest, but added that they have failed to maintain their performance levels over 90 minutes.

The new signings have not settled together

Mateus Fernandes has shown quality and intensity in midfield since his £85m arrival from West Ham, and Destiny Udogie has offered flashes in limited minutes as he works back to full fitness. Even so, the rebuild still looks more like a collection of separate ideas than a settled team.

Dominic Solanke has been eased back after a string of injury issues last season, but his numbers are part of the problem too. He has five league appearances and no goals or assists, while Mathys Tel has failed to get going this term despite a strong pre-season.

De Zerbi also said Spurs build play fairly effectively through the lines, but their decision-making in the final third routinely lets them down. That is where the summer spending has to start showing up, and it has not happened yet.

The next league game now comes after the break, with Tottenham carrying a two-point return and a bottom-place ranking into that pause. The rebuild is still early, but the gap between the spend and the return is already visible.

Written by Jack Mercer with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 1 outlet. How we work →