Spurs’ Worst Start Deepens After Villa Defeat

Roberto De Zerbi tore into his Tottenham squad after a 3-2 home defeat by Aston Villa on Saturday, saying he was “very disappointed, sad and frustrated for the performance.” Spurs were booed off at full time and head into the three-week international break without a Premier League win and just two points to show for their efforts.

The Italian headed straight down the tunnel rather than face the crowd, but there was no hiding from the questions afterwards. “We can’t lose the game in this way, we can’t concede the second goal, we can’t lose balance just because we are losing,” De Zerbi said, according to the Guardian.

Suzuki’s long balls and a switched-off Spurs

De Zerbi said he’d spoken to his four attackers at the 51st minute, telling them to stay calm and use their heads. It didn’t matter. Aston Villa’s tactical setup exposed familiar problems, with Nicolas Jackson scoring in the 67th minute off a long clearance from goalkeeper Zion Suzuki, exactly the kind of ball De Zerbi claims his side had prepared for in training.

He also pointed to the introduction of Mohammed Kudus as disrupting his team’s balance, and didn’t spare criticism of the squad’s physical condition either. Emi Buendía added Villa’s third before late Tottenham goals from Conor Gallagher and Jan Paul van Hecke made the scoreline respectable, if nothing else.

No parting words before the break

Asked what he’d told the squad heading into international duty, De Zerbi said he hadn’t spoken to them at all, adding: “I didn’t want to say anything.” He said the group needs to work harder and that the finish to Saturday’s game simply wasn’t good enough.

Two points from five games leaves Spurs facing their worst start to a Premier League season on record, with a goal difference of -6. Whether three weeks away does anything to fix that is anyone’s guess.