Roberto De Zerbi bizarrely tells Tottenham stars to play like they did under Ange Postecoglou as new Spurs boss vows to stay 'a long time'

De Zerbi was appointed by Tottenham to succeed Igor Tudor as head coach. In his first press conference since taking over at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, De Zerbi raised eyebrows by pointing to the club's past as the key to its future. Despite the club's current predicament near the bottom of the Premier League table, the former Brighton and Marseille boss is adamant that the 'Angeball' philosophy is the right path forward. 

De Zerbi’s tactical blueprint involves a heavy emphasis on possession and attacking flair, qualities he believes were at their peak during the early stages of Postecoglou's tenure. "I want to keep the ball," De Zerbi said. "I want to see again the Tottenham I watched with Postecoglou. In my second season in Brighton, there was Postecoglou here with a lot of these players and it was one of the best teams in terms of quality of play. With Pedro Porro, with Destiny Udogie, with Micky van de Ven, with Cristian Romero, with this squad, and I would like to see it again. The DNA of this club, of this squad is to find the goal, to score!"

"In my plan for sure there is the idea to stay for a long time. To try to put Tottenham - and I’m not speaking about the titles because it’s not the right moment now - but to put Tottenham to stay in the position in the Premier League because everything is here to reach that level."

While the long-term vision is one of top-flight dominance, the immediate reality for Tottenham is far grimmer. The club is currently winless in 13 Premier League matches, a disastrous run of form that has seen them plummet down the standings. Addressing the managerial turnover, the Italian remained humble about his predecessors while focusing on the job at hand. "I do not think I am better than Thomas Frank or Igor Tudor, because I consider them very good coaches," he admitted. "I try to bring my style, myself, my character, my personality, my passion, to help the players first to show their qualities, because they have a lot of qualities. And then to achieve our target, because the most important part now is our target. Now I have to work. Now we have to make points."

Demonstrating his commitment to the project, it has been revealed that De Zerbi’s five-year contract does not contain a relegation escape clause. This suggests the manager is prepared to lead the club regardless of which division they find themselves in next season, though his primary focus remains on a survival fight that begins against Sunderland this Sunday. He hopes to restore pride to a fanbase that has seen their team slide into the relegation zone with only seven games remaining in the campaign.