Three-week international break 'could be massive for Kudus'published at 16:07 BST 1 October
16:07 BST 1 October
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BBC Sport contributor and Tottenham fan Kish Patel says the international break has "come at a good time" for Spurs.
He said: "Spurs have struggled massively with injuries and I think the recent form is because of injuries.
"This international break is absolutely huge for Spurs.
"We have had a massive issue with the number nine. I think Dominic Solanke profiles well in a Roberto de Zerbi team, but he doesn't look fit. Give him three weeks and hopefully he can condition himself to be back for Spurs.
"Mohammed Kudus is coming off the back off a big injury. He almost looks a bit tentative. Those three weeks could be massive for him.
"I think you're looking at slightly better versions of them after the break."
Spurs CEO 'encouraged by aspects of the underlying performances'published at 11:48 BST 1 October
11:48 BST 1 October
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Tottenham chief executive Vinai Venkatesham has given his backing to head coach Roberto de Zerbi after his side's poor start to the season.
Spurs are bottom of the Premier League after collecting just two points from their opening five games and they are also out of the Carabao Cup, despite a huge summer transfer spend.
However, Venkatesham said he is "encouraged by aspects of the underlying performances since the opening day defeat [at Brentford]", with Tottenham creating plenty of good chances without scoring in draws against Nottingham Forest and Everton, and defeat by Newcastle.
Speaking at the first Fan Advisory Board meeting of the season, Venkatesham "acknowledged the disappointment at the current points total even at this early point in the season and recognised the frustration this caused supporters following the previous campaign".
He added that he believed in De Zerbi and the revamped squad, to which 10 new signings were added and that lost several experienced players, like Guglielmo Vicario, Djed Spence, Cristian Romero, Kevin Danso and Joao Palhinha, as well as highly rated defender Luka Vuskovic.
"The club had made significant changes over the summer, both on and off the pitch, and recognised that these might take time to take full effect," Venkatesham said.
When will the charges be resolved? What is the most likely punishment?published at 18:19 BST 30 September
18:19 BST 30 September
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Football finance expert Kieran Magiure, has been answering your questions after Manchester City were found guilty of all charges related to breaches of financial rules.
Gary: Is there any chance this could be resolved by the end of the season?
Kieran: There is a very high chance it will be resolved by the end of the season. Because if it is not, we could end up in another situation very similar to that of Burnley and Everton where a club could be relegated and Manchester City are not given a deduction. And next season, a club that finished in 18th could say had that deduction been applied earlier, we wouldn't have been relegated. So that would add to the complications.
Certainly looking at the Premier League's press release itself, it does seem that it is very keen to resolve it as quickly as possible. If you take a look at the length of time that it took the commissions in respect to Nottingham Forest and Everton, once they have heard the evidence, applying the sanctions is the quickest part. It's listening to evidence that is the torturous process.
Dappy: Based on everything you read, what is the most likely punishment going to be for Manchester City?
Kieran: I agree that it could be a very hefty points deduction and a transfer embargo at the very least. On top of that, I believe there will be a very significant financial penalty added into the equation. The logic behind having a transfer embargo is that it then becomes a multi-season issue.
If we go back to 2013 when City were in breach of Uefa rules, they had a transfer ban, wage and squad caps, it did impact the club in the subsequent season.
Rehan: If Manchester City get a huge fine, what would the FA do with that money? Where would it go?
Kieran: It would be shared by the Premier League clubs, including Manchester City. And it will be offset against the league's legal bill. Discussions with lawyers suggest they think City could be liable for about two-thirds to three-quarters of Premier League's legal costs, which is estimated to be in the region of £50-60m.
Boxed into a corner?published at 09:17 BST 30 September
09:17 BST 30 September
Pat Nevin Former footballer and presenter
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The Premier League has opened a Pandora's box of problems which cannot be closed. However well-intentioned, however morally upright they mean to be, the way the product is perceived around the planet by fans will be negatively affected.
This looks like a gigantic mess, but could also become a bit of a joke, especially if they attempt to rewrite history, and change the winners' names on the Premier League and cup trophies over these past 15 years. I wouldn't want the engraver's job.
I believe financial rules brought in to prioritise financial sustainability were also aimed at limiting the money being spent by the clubs, especially the staggering, ever-inflating sums spent on sometimes fairly average players. It could lead to a de facto salary cap, which many fans would approve of.
The long-term problem for the league is easy to see here: if the top players are then offered significantly more money to play elsewhere, they will be off before you can say 'man on'.
I always thought the Premier League had taken a huge risk going down this regulatory road. As with Manchester City's future, nobody knows what the real long-term ramifications will be.
I have a suspicion it could end up being the greatest own goal in the sport's entire history.
The big take: If City are cast out of England's top leagues, what might the owners do – hang around the lower reaches, or find something else? Wasn't there the idea of a Super League? Keep that thought in the back of your mind.
Pat Nevin writes weekly in the Football Extra newsletter. If you're outside the UK and would like to receive it, sign up here.
International break can take your mind away from a bad defeatpublished at 08:42 BST 30 September
08:42 BST 30 September
Pat Nevin Former footballer and presenter
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Most of the time it is not that big a deal if you go into the international break having just lost a club game if I am honest, as teams lose games frequently.
That is just the life of a professional footballer. You have to be able to cope with disappointment as an individual and as a team.
Admittedly, players will sometimes say that they want another domestic game quickly, but it is almost always specifically after a 'bad' defeat as opposed to just a run-of-the-mill loss.
However, if the team has genuinely played terribly, or lost a game they were expected to win comfortably, you will commonly hear the phrase "we want to have a chance to get back out there and put it right quickly".
Players who have had a stinker, even if their team won, might also want to get out again as soon as possible to put it right in front of their fans, or 'reset'. The 'reset' argument is just current football jargon to say, "we will try to get it right next time, and we blew it this week, sorry".
The international break can also have the beneficial effect of taking your mind away from a bad defeat. This is not to say that you don't care, it is just that you must compartmentalise your thoughts and feelings. Footballers are among the best at this.
You simply cannot go to play for your national team and spend the time brooding about what happened against Brentford last week. That way lies madness and another poor performance, only this time in front of the entire nation.
Pat Nevin writes weekly in the Football Extra newsletter. If you're outside the UK and would like to receive it, sign up here.
'This may be the biggest story in the Premier League's history'published at 07:01 BST 29 September
07:01 BST 29 September
Pat Nevin Former footballer and presenter
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Unbelievably, sensible and well-informed people are seriously discussing Manchester City getting a huge points deduction or being demoted or kicked out of the English leagues completely.
There is also reasonable talk about them being sued by just about every other major club in the domestic game, and a few beyond that. That is before you get to the concept of titles being stripped and trophies retrospectively re-awarded to others.
There is still an appeal to be heard, but they have been found guilty already. Serious consequences must be considered. Following the draconian punishments handed to Everton and Nottingham Forest, among others, City might find they don't just have the book thrown at them, it is the entire British Library lobbed in their general direction.
Those other clubs cooperated in the process. City have faced more charges and they involve larger sums and over a longer time period. In short, things are not looking good for the club that dominated English football for almost a decade.
This may be the biggest story in the Premier League's history and it is going to run and run.
Other serious considerations will follow hard on the heels of the Blues' dilemmas – specifically what long-term effects will this have on the Premier League? They will not all be good ones.
Some reasonably argue that the financial rules City have been found to have broken shouldn't have been put there in the first place. They were brought in to safeguard the financial security of the clubs and the league, but try telling that to many City, Everton and Nottingham Forest fans just now.
Newcastle and Aston Villa have plenty of financial backing, but these rules have hurt their ability to grow and stay competitive with the legacy clubs. This all feels unfair if you are a supporter of those two.
The money that will now be frittered away by the English game on lawyers and legal fees is eye-watering, and it will grow exponentially as the litigation increases.
Pat Nevin writes weekly in the Football Extra newsletter. If you're outside the UK and would like to receive it, sign up here.
'It is unrealistic to expect simply throwing money at the team will fix it'published at 15:51 BST 25 September
15:51 BST 25 September
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We asked you to rate Tottenham's start to the season and tell us what Roberto de Zerbi should be focusing on during this extended international break.
Here are some of your comments:
Mick: While I knew we would be rebuilding and learning, I didn't think we would be doing so in the manner we are. Taking five games to score a goal is just not good enough. Selling Vuskovic and bringing in Van Hecke made no sense to me. Not panicking yet, but its going to be a nervy couple of weeks after the break.
Leroy: He gets 10 games, for me. He has five to go. With a good striker we'd be ok. We're playing better and creating chances. Solanke is miles off it though.
Rick: Rather than revert to the long-term attitude of despair, this time I will give the squad and manager the benefit of the doubt. We are seeing flashes of what looks like a good future. We aren't that far off, despite no wins as yet.
Tom: I don't really understand what our transfer policy was attempting to achieve. Two or three good and necessary signings in defence and midfield, but last season we were screaming out for goals. Why on earth we didn't prioritise a 20-goal-a-season player in the summer window I can't comprehend. Letting Djed Spence leave after the best form of his career at the end of last season and at the World Cup, without a ready replacement, also now looks like insanity.
Aidy: It is unrealistic to expect simply throwing money at the team will fix it. It will take time to form. Give De Zerbi until Christmas to see if the team is starting to click. The biggest problem is the lack of support shown by Spurs fans at home.
Let's give De Zerbi a proper chancepublished at 11:58 BST 25 September
11:58 BST 25 September
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Big spending always means big ambitions, but shelling out so much money on so many players the way Tottenham did this summer produces problems for any manager - and there is no quick fix.
If I was given a bundle of cash and I spent every penny of it on pink shoes, brown trousers, a yellow shirt and an orange tie for a wedding, then I'm sure you would say it just doesn't work.
That's similar to what has happened at Spurs, where the board has backed Roberto de Zerbi to the hilt with an outlay of about £400m on new players.
It was an almost unprecedented occurrence from a club that has always been renowned for being careful with investment in their team, and it sent the expectations of many Spurs supporters through the roof.
However, finding a way for your team to win takes a manager in lots of different directions and they all involve time. Not only has De Zerbi not been given that early time, the majority of his players have now been taken away from him for another three weeks on international duty.
His biggest challenge right now will be integrating those players who have just arrived with the players already at the club, so the money spent is justified. All of this will take time, patience and little details that supporters never see.
In my day, we were given time to create a team and a family. For today's managers, time seems more limited than ever.
We are only five games into the season and there are already some Spurs fans who think he is the worst manager in the world, even though he has proven elsewhere how good he is. Let's give him a proper chance.
Each player needs a different amount of time to settle in a new environment and adjust to the demands of a very single-minded and demanding coach like De Zerbi.
Coaching a team to be a team takes time, patience and a sound idea of the strengths of all your players. Even when you've got that, trying to knit every player together takes time - and that is still De Zerbi's issue.
He was always playing catch-up because his players weren't all in place when the season began. He missed the opportunity to assess his squad and impose his own principles.
He is a coach at heart and he will want to be out on the training pitch putting together a system that he believes will bring success to the club. Unfortunately, this international break means he cannot do that with all of his players.
How do you feel about Spurs' start to the season?published at 15:48 BST 24 September
15:48 BST 24 September
As we enter the season's first international break, we want to hear your thoughts on the opening five games in the Premier League.
It has not been a good start for Roberto de Zerbi's side as they sit bottom of the table with just two draws and no wins at the beginning of his full first campaign in charge.
The Italian will hope that scoring their first goals of the league season in Saturday's 3-2 home defeat by Aston Villa shows some green shoots for a new-look Tottenham squad that was rebuilt by extensive summer spending.
How do you rate Spurs' start to the season and why? And what should De Zerbi be focusing on during the extended break?
'De Zerbi is in an impossible position'published at 12:08 BST 23 September
12:08 BST 23 September
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Tottenham's Roberto de Zerbi as well as Xabi Alonso of Chelsea are in an "impossible position" this season, believes The Observer's Rory Smith.
The managers took charge of their clubs in the spring and oversaw a lot of activity in the transfer window, with Chelsea and Spurs ending the summer as the second and third highest spenders respectively.
Smith says the changes to their squads is why De Zerbi and Alonso need time to build coherence in their sides.
"We're kind of asking them to do something impossible," Smith told BBC Radio 5 Live's Monday Night Club.
"The Premier League spends July and August pumping three-and-a-half billion pounds around Europe to buy all of these players and then on 1 September it's like 'right, we want to see coherent football teams immediately'. It doesn't work like that.
"Football's about connections and relationships and understanding and the reason none of those teams have any is because they're constantly full of new players. It seems really obvious.
"It strikes me the managers are in an impossible position because as soon as the results don't come, the easy thing to do is sack them, but the real problem is we're asking them to build coherent sides instantly out of all of these random resources."
Spurs legend Hughton 'very confident things will improve'published at 15:41 BST 22 September
15:41 BST 22 September
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Former Tottenham defender Chris Hughton says he is "very confident things will improve" under Roberto de Zerbi despite a poor start to the 2026-27 season.
Spurs have two points from five matches, their lowest tally since the start of the 2008-09 campaign.
Speaking after being inducted into the Tottenham Hall of Fame, Hughton said: "We're five games into the season and I think for some it's disappointing, which is normal.
"We have to take stock. I think what the club have at this particular moment is, in De Zerbi, a very good coach that's thought very well of.
"And I genuinely feel that the players that have been brought in are good players. I think it's a good level of player and of course only time will tell on each of these individuals, but I think the club have bought well.
"What the club have done is bought over a shorter period of time.
"I think particularly because of last season and the desperation of going to the last game of the season, it was a conscious effort to bring these players in quickly. Sometimes it clicks straight away, sometimes it takes time.
"I'm very confident that there will be a turnaround, but I understand supporters want to see things now. But I'm very confident things will improve."
De Zerbi 'made a rod for his own back' with signingspublished at 12:06 BST 22 September
12:06 BST 22 September
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The Observer's Rory Smith says Roberto de Zerbi has "almost made a rod for his own back" this season by signing so many players in the transfer window.
Following a relegation battle last season, there was a vast summer of recruitment in north London, with 13 players joining.
However results haven't improved - with Tottenham bottom of the Premier League table after five games, with just two points gained from a possible 15.
"I don't think Tottenham should be bottom [of the table], but I don't think it's a shock that a team with eight or nine new signings on the pitch doesn't know what it's doing," said Smith on BBC Radio 5 Live's Monday Night Club.
"But De Zerbi wanted the changes, so he's almost made a rod for his own back."
BBC Sport pundit Chris Sutton added: "You would expect De Zerbi to be getting more out of a group of players that he has brought in.
"Every week he consistently criticises the performance of the players and it's reasonable to think they should be doing better than they have done."
Former Premier League defender Nedum Onuoha also believes Spurs can't use new signings needing time to gel as an excuse for their poor start.
"I think it's fair for them to get grief," said Onuoha. "I'm on board with it.
"They should have won more games by now and they should have scored more goals based on the profile of players they have.
"Most of them have had a pre-season for De Zerbi to get his ideas across. When a player isn't performing, it's the manager's job to make a session on who to keep in the team.
"I don't think just because they've signed loads of new players that they can't be successful because they absolutely can when the quality is there."
'A recipe for disaster' - but Tottenham 'will turn it around'published at 11:37 BST 21 September
11:37 BST 21 September
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Former Premier League striker Clinton Morrison has backed Tottenham to "still have a good season", despite their poor start in Roberto de Zerbi's first full campaign in charge.
Saturday's 3-2 defeat by Aston Villa has left Spurs rooted to the bottom of the Premier League going into the international break, but they did score league goals for the first time in 2026-27.
"Spurs were the better team in that first half and [Zion] Suzuki made three or four outstanding saves," Morrison told BBC Radio 5 Live's Football Daily podcast.
"I feel like we've been saying this a lot with Tottenham so far this season - dominating matches, not being clinical enough, and then getting punished.
"The defending is nowhere near good enough and they are conceding too many easy goals at the moment. It is a recipe for disaster.
"But, I do think they will turn it around and I do think they will have a good season.
"When it clicks for them, they are going to give some team a hiding very soon.
"I think they have good attacking players, they will score goals and win games at some point.
"The only thing they have missed is when signing all these midfielders and attacking players, they have missed a centre forward.
"De Zerbi will not put his arm around you - it's his way or the highway and you have to produce for him. The hierarchy has backed him and given him the money, now he has to get results.
"But, their upcoming fixtures don't look too bad. I do think scoring their first two Premier league goals, even in defeat, does help moving forward."
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