Roberto De Zerbi Prepares Tottenham for Transfer Chaos Ahead of Newcastle Clash
Roberto De Zerbi walked into his pre‑Newcastle briefing with the look of a man juggling two games at once. One under the lights against Newcastle United. Another against the clock.
Tottenham have already hurled more than £300m at this window and pulled back close to £150m in sales, yet the squad still feels unfinished. The deadline looms at 11pm on Tuesday. The doors at Hotspur Way are not shut.
Spurs ready for late exits – and one more arrival
De Zerbi did not dress it up. Asked about outgoings, he opened the door.
“Can be possible, out,” he said, summing up a market he clearly views with a mix of pragmatism and disbelief. “In the transfer market, it is crazy, and we have to be able to find the players if some players go out to make another player in.”
That is the balance now. Tottenham have spent heavily, reshaped aggressively, but the head coach still sees a gap.
“I didn’t expect a transfer window like we have done,” he admitted. “I think we can do one player more in one specific position.”
No guarantees. No names. Just the clear message that Spurs are not done if the right domino falls. Some players could leave, and if they do, Tottenham intend to be ready to react, not scramble.
The stance on Pape Matar Sarr underlines that point. The midfielder is fit, involved, but not entirely nailed down.
“Pape is good. We have to see in the last days of the transfer market what can happen with him,” De Zerbi said. “I’ve been very clear with all the players.”
The message to the dressing room has been blunt: if you want out, say so. If you stay, commit.
“If you speak clearly, you can’t expect surprises. The players who wanted to leave have left. We maybe have some players who want to leave, and they are waiting; we are waiting for an offer.
You have to feel proud to stay here. It’s an emotional project we are building with new players.”
That word – “emotional” – is doing a lot of work. This is not just a churn of assets. De Zerbi wants buy‑in, not passengers.
Dinner, alignment and a restless club
The Italian is not fighting this battle alone. On Thursday night he sat down to dinner with the people who shape Tottenham’s future off the pitch – the owners, sporting director Johan Lange and chief executive Vinai Venkatesham.
“Yesterday we went to dinner with the owners, Johan and Vinai, and we spoke about this,” he revealed. “All of us are on the same page and a very good connection.”
It matters. Spurs have spent too many years pulling in slightly different directions. Right now, with the window crackling and a new era still forming, De Zerbi is insisting that the football department and the boardroom are aligned.
While he drills his players for Newcastle, Lange will be working the phones, trying to turn that dinner-table consensus into concrete deals. Outgoings if the right bids land. One more signing if the market opens a door.
Maddison pain, Kudus hope
On the pitch, there was at least one piece of welcome news. James Maddison, who fractured his shoulder in the 3-0 defeat at Brentford on the opening weekend, has avoided the worst.
“James Maddison has not a big problem,” De Zerbi said. “Just pain in his left shoulder. He’s working, but I don’t know if he’s available for tomorrow.”
It is not a green light, but it is not a red one either. Maddison is back on the grass, pushing, trying to make himself an option. The final call will come late.
Mohammed Kudus could also come into the frame. De Zerbi suggested the attacker may be available for selection, another potential weapon as Spurs look to respond from that bruising opening defeat.
So Tottenham head into Saturday night with questions still hanging over the squad, a treatment room easing slightly, and a manager who refuses to tiptoe around the reality of modern football.
The window is “crazy”, as he keeps saying. The challenge now is simple: can Spurs turn that chaos into the last, decisive pieces of a squad built to match De Zerbi’s ambition?
