Tottenham’s Nightmare Start: Roberto De Zerbi’s reign begins with familiar lows
Tottenham’s first full season under Roberto De Zerbi began disastrously as Brentford thrashed the Lilywhites 3-0 at the Gtech Community Stadium, with new signing Sandro Tonali overpowered in midfield and club-record buy Mamadou Sangaré inspiring the hosts to a statement opening-day victory.
Tottenham Hotspur’s expensive rebuild could hardly have started more embarrassingly. Roberto De Zerbi’s side were swept aside 3-0 by Brentford at the Gtech Community Stadium on Saturday, producing a performance that felt uncomfortably familiar for a club desperate to leave last season’s misery behind.
Spurs had invested heavily during the summer, with Sandro Tonali and Mateus Fernandes among the headline arrivals, while Andy Robertson and Jan Paul van Hecke also made their competitive debuts. Yet the new faces could not disguise the same old problems as Brentford ran through Tottenham with alarming ease.
Keane Lewis-Potter opened the scoring after only 12 minutes before Vitaly Janelt doubled the advantage in the 33rd minute, and Michael Kayode made it three shortly after half-time, with Brazilian striker Igor Thiago failing to score a fourth after missing from the penalty spot.
The result leaves Roberto De Zerbi’s tenure off to the worst possible start, with Tottenham suffering their joint-heaviest defeat on the opening matchday of a Premier League season, matching the 3-0 loss to Manchester United in 2011-12.
Adding to the sting, this was Brentford’s biggest opening-day win in their history, and their heaviest league victory since a 5-1 rout of Rotherham United in the Championship back in 2018-19.
A Team That Still Looks Broken
For a team that spent much of last season fighting simply to remain in the Premier League, Tottenham’s opening performance offered very little evidence that the situation has changed.
They finished 17th last term and only secured their top-flight status on the final day, making the summer spending spree feel like an attempt to draw a line under an extremely difficult campaign. Instead, they looked like a team still carrying the scars of it.
Brentford were sharper, more aggressive and far better organised. Tottenham, meanwhile, struggled to build attacks, failed to impose themselves in midfield and repeatedly left gaps for the hosts to exploit. The Bees did not need an extraordinary performance to win; they simply exposed weaknesses that were already visible.
The first half was particularly damning. Tottenham failed to register a shot on target before the interval, but this wasn’t a rarity for the visitors as it marked the tenth of such since the start of the last Premier League season. It was another uncomfortable reminder of how frequently Spurs have struggled to create danger in matches.
In addition, they have now earned just 79 points in 77 Premier League games since the start of the 2024-25 season, that is less than managed by their North London neighbor Arsenal last season alone, 85.
Sandro Tonali Failed to Fire
Sandro Tonali’s arrival was meant to symbolise Tottenham’s new ambition. The £100 million signing arrived with enormous expectations and was handed a starting role immediately, but his competitive debut could scarcely have gone worse.
Rather than dictating the midfield, Tonali found himself overwhelmed by Brentford’s energy, with Mamadou Sangare particularly impressive in the centre of the pitch; a comparison will sting Tottenham.
Sangare arrived at Brentford for a reported £39 million, considerably less than the fee Spurs committed to Tonali, yet the Brentford midfielder looked like the more influential player on the day.
He helped create the opening goal and repeatedly disrupted Tottenham’s attempts to establish control.
One game obviously cannot determine whether Tonali will succeed in north London. But for a player brought in to help transform Spurs, this was a sobering introduction.
Same Problems, Different Players
The most worrying aspect for De Zerbi will not be the scoreline alone. It will be how familiar the defeat looked.
Tottenham changed managers last season, underwent another significant recruitment drive and now have De Zerbi in charge, but the basic problems remain.
Brentford found it far too easy to play through the visitors, while Tottenham’s defensive organisation repeatedly collapsed.
Kean Lewis-Potter and Sangare were allowed too much space for the opener. Vitaly Janelt’s goal exposed further defensive uncertainty, while Michael Kayode’s third arrived after another breakdown.
Even De Zerbi’s half-time changes failed to transform the game. Mateus Fernandes and Rodrigo Bentancur came on, but Spurs could not produce the response required from a side that had just invested heavily in its squad.
To make matters worse, Brentford’s Igor Thiago struck the post from the penalty spot after Bentancur conceded a spot-kick. Tottenham can only count themselves fortunate that the scoreline did not become even more uncomfortable.
More Signings, More Questions
Tottenham are still expected to strengthen further, with deals already done for Manchester City’s Savinho and Omar Marmoush. But the question is becoming increasingly obvious: how many new players will it take to fix this team?
Spurs have already spent heavily, yet their opening performance suggested that recruitment alone will not solve the structural problems inside the side.
New players need time to develop chemistry, but De Zerbi will not have the luxury of allowing another season to drift away.
The club cannot afford another campaign spent looking over its shoulder. There is also the issue of injuries. Micky van de Ven was unavailable after missing pre-season, while several other important players have fitness concerns.
That has left De Zerbi working with a defence that is still being reshaped, but Saturday’s performance showed why reinforcements remain urgent.
Where Does Tottenham Go From Here?
One defeat should not define a season, especially when a new manager is attempting to integrate several major signings. But this was not merely a defeat. It was the manner of it.
Tottenham were outplayed by a Brentford team that looked more settled, more confident and more prepared for the occasion. The Bees scored three, could have had more and rarely looked troubled by the visitors. That is the part that should concern De Zerbi.
Spurs fans entered the new campaign hoping the club’s huge summer investment would finally produce a different Tottenham. Instead, their first 90 minutes offered an unpleasant dose of déjà vu.
he season is only one game old, so there is plenty of time to respond. But if Tottenham want to prove that last season was an aberration rather than a warning, they need to start showing it quickly. Because after another £200m-plus summer, patience at Tottenham will not be unlimited.
And after what happened at Brentford, the question is no longer if De Zerbi has inherited a rebuilding project, but whether he has inherited a team that needs rebuilding all over again.
