Roberto De Zerbi has been informed that he needs to create a Tottenham team that is capable of achieving great things and also exciting the supporters, after being confirmed as the new manager in north London, which is a significant task for any manager.

The Italian has taken over from Igor Tudor, who only lasted 44 days in his role before he was let go after securing just one point from five Premier League games, which is a very short tenure for a manager.

De Zerbi was not working as a manager after leaving Marseille in February, but he made a name for himself while he was in charge at Brighton between 2022 and 2024, where his style of play was widely praised and he is now being asked to replicate that in the capital as Tottenham seek to rediscover their form of previous years.

The club won the Europa League last year, although that was their first trophy since 2008, and they have previously been regular participants in the Champions League, which is one of the most prestigious club competitions in the world, and Tottenham's hierarchy, despite two difficult years domestically, still have high ambitions and they have been made clear to De Zerbi.

He stated: “I am delighted to be joining this fantastic football club, which is one of the biggest and most prestigious in the world, and in all my discussions with the club’s leadership, their ambition for the future has been clear - to build a team capable of reaching great achievements, and to do that playing a style of football that excites and inspires our supporters, and I am here because I believe in that ambition and have signed a long-term contract to give everything to deliver it.”

Despite Tottenham's long-term goals, there remains a genuine possibility that they could slip into the Championship, which is the second tier of English football, with the club just a point above the bottom three, and they haven't won in the league in 2026 and were beaten 3-0 by relegation rivals Nottingham Forest last time out, which makes De Zerbi's initial task even more challenging.

“Our short-term priority is to climb the Premier League table,” said the Italian, “which will be the complete focus until the final whistle of the last game of the season, and I’m looking forward to getting out on the training pitch and working with these players to achieve that, which is a crucial objective for the club.”

Roberto De Zerbi has been out of work since leaving Marseille, and this is his first managerial job since then, and he will be looking to make a positive impact at Tottenham.

De Zerbi has signed a lucrative contract, which is understood to include a clause that protects him in case of relegation, and Tottenham have been through two managers already this season with Tudor replacing Thomas Frank, but the Italian was their top candidate the minute they went back on the hunt for a new manager.

One of his former players, Neal Maupay, whom he managed at Brighton, has confessed that De Zerbi's ideals and principles won't be implemented overnight despite the need for an instant impact, and the striker told Sky Sports News: “What he wants to do will take time!” which is a realistic assessment of the situation.

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