Roberto De Zerbi has stated definitively that Lucas Bergvall will definitely remain at Tottenham for the current campaign, though he cannot provide the same assurance regarding Pape Matar Sarr.
Bergvall informed the club during the summer, prior to his World Cup departure, that he was seeking a new opportunity this season to grow as a central midfielder. Tottenham turned down approaches from Newcastle and Nottingham Forest for the 20-year-old, and De Zerbi handed the youngster numerous starts and playing time throughout the pre-season schedule.
The Italian manager suggests Bergvall now intends to stay at the club, but acknowledges uncertainty about his 23-year-old colleague Sarr’s future at Tottenham after the September 1st transfer deadline, given the significant £185million investment in new midfielders Sandro Tonali and Mateus Fernandes.
Regarding Bergvall, De Zerbi confirmed the player will absolutely stay. He explained they spoke extensively during pre-season and views Bergvall as a top player with top potential. De Zerbi expressed his appreciation for the player remaining and noted the youngster himself now wants to stay with no issues. Regarding Sarr, De Zerbi explained the player started pre-season late because he remained in Senegal until the first week of August. He described Sarr as a good player and acknowledged uncertainty about whether he stays, stating they must analyse the situation. De Zerbi emphasised that Sarr is another very important player.
Tottenham could potentially reach £377million in summer expenditure following the additions of Manchester City forwards Savinho and Omar Marmoush. The north London club’s owners, the Lewis family, pledged actions not words after last season’s narrow escape from relegation, and De Zerbi believes they and the board have delivered on that promise.
The 47-year-old stated he is very happy and cannot speak about other coaches from the past. In his experience, he said they kept their word and delivered on what they promised before he arrived in March. He expressed satisfaction with the situation since mid-March. However, he emphasised that what they are doing is not for the coach but for the club, the fans, the history of the club, the pride of the club, and the level of the club. De Zerbi believes this moment is crucial for the club because after two difficult seasons they must change the mood completely and give it a boost. He suggested that once they have finished this transfer market, for a long time they will not need many things and can work together in the right conditions and direction to build step by step something special or compete for the top of the table. He acknowledged he does not know if that can happen now or not, but they have the squad to play in every stadium the right way. He acknowledged they must improve and become a team, but he believes they have all the qualities to do that.
De Zerbi sees significant potential in his revamped squad to compete for major honours but wants to assess the situation once the transfer window shuts.
He confirmed there is big potential and said at the end of the transfer market he will be more accurate in his opinion. He noted he must keep balance because sometimes with the transfer market, including Tonali and Van Henke, they have brought in a lot.
Critics and supporters of rival clubs have voiced concerns about Tottenham’s spending this window, despite the club handling matters appropriately through stadium revenue and generating approximately £213million through sales and loans.
De Zerbi cannot comprehend the criticism but experienced similar scrutiny last season and plans to use it as motivation.
He said he does not understand the criticism and cannot explain it. He stated there is no pressure and it is not a problem. He questioned why people would not want Tottenham to improve, describing it as another motivation for them. He noted last season all other clubs wanted to kill them, describing this scrutiny as another part of football. He reminds the players of this every week and believes they must remember last season, referencing the last friendly game against Hoffenheim and the earlier game against Everton. He suggested observers could imagine the difference between those games and the match against Everton when they stayed up with all that pressure.
So how close is this Tottenham side to the team De Zerbi envisions?
He assessed that on paper it is very close but they must see and work on the pitch. He stated he is experienced enough not to say too much and is very happy with the squad. He acknowledged they must complete the squad but at the moment he is very happy. He said the answer he receives from the pitch must match his dreams and thoughts with the board, though they may have to see on the pitch. He admitted everyone is very excited but ultimately the pitch speaks, as they say in Italian. He cautioned that if they start now with big words, he loves pressure and it is not a problem of pressure, but to be honest and correct they must wait for the answer from the pitch. He explained football is a connection and like magic, and sometimes they can find the connection between players when every player thinks like the coach or they come together with an idea of football, and the players who do not start are the biggest fans of those playing. He stressed they must create something on and off the pitch to compete as they want.
Spurs now possess a £100million asset in Tonali following his club record acquisition from Newcastle. While De Zerbi had known the Italy international for some time, he discovered the 26-year-old’s quality only upon beginning their coaching relationship.
He observed that Sandro Tonali is better than he thought before working with him, both as a player and as a person. He stated he knows Tonali’s family and agents and they are all good people. He expressed great happiness working with him and believes he is the right player in the right place, particularly because they want to put him inside the project. De Zerbi noted Tonali has the right qualities, personality, and values to stay at the club.
With eleven days remaining in the transfer window, De Zerbi does not believe he needs to placate his players, expecting them to understand the standard of squad he is constructing to help Tottenham become genuine contenders once more.
He acknowledged there is nothing to do in that regard and he loves speaking clearly. He noted that on August 21st he believes every player already knows the squad. If any of them does not want to accept competition on the pitch and inside the dressing room, they can leave. He tries to be honest and make the best decisions on the pitch to find the best starting eleven, but the players must accept the reasons because if they want to become better and compete for the top of the table, eleven players are not enough and fifteen players are not enough. He observed that when analysing top teams like Liverpool two years ago, Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City, Bayern Munich, Barcelona, Real Madrid, Juventus, and Milan, those squads have significant competition inside the dressing room.
With the squad’s quality continuously improving, what do the new attacking signings mean for 19-year-old Mikey Moore, who is slated to feature in Saturday’s Premier League opener against Brentford amid reports of a potential loan move to German club Koln?
De Zerbi responded that this is not the right moment to speak about the last ten days of the transfer market, which he noted is not finished yet. He expressed being very happy with Mikey Moore, stating he is working well and is a good player. He acknowledged he does not know if Moore goes on loan or not. He believes Moore has big potential for the club and they try to find the best solution for every player they have, including Luca Williams-Barnett and Malachi Hardy, who he described as two potential big players. He expressed pride that they have come from their academy and said they must manage them the best way possible.
De Zerbi organised for numerous former Tottenham players, including Glenn Hoddle, Gary Mabbutt and Steve Perryman, to address his current squad to convey the club’s essence.
He explained that the players and especially the foreign players must understand the level of this club. He noted that even if they finish two seasons in a row in 17th position, nothing changes and the level of the club cannot change because the last two seasons were not great. He believes the legends can explain better than him or anyone else what Tottenham has been in the Premier League and in Europe.
One player was absent whom De Zerbi would have appreciated meeting and having speak to some of his forwards.
He confessed he is sorry he did not see Chris Waddle. He explained Chris Waddle was one of his favourite players when he was a kid and he played in Marseille. He noted in Marseille he said the same thing and Waddle would have been good for Kudus, for Kulusevski, for Xavi Simons, and for Mathys Tel because he was a great player.