Roberto De Zerbi's Ambitious Plans for Tottenham

Roberto De Zerbi is not easing himself into life at Tottenham. He is tearing into it.

The Italian has already overseen a lavish recruitment drive, yet he insists Spurs are barely past halfway. The metaphor he chose to describe his transfer-market persona left little room for doubt.

"In the transfer market when I want one player I become like a shark, no chance to say no!" he told Football London, a line that could have been ripped straight from a dressing-room wall rather than a press conference.

A “bomba” still to come

Tottenham’s spending has surged, highlighted by the £85m capture of Mateus Fernandes, but De Zerbi is adamant the rebuild is only “60 per cent” complete.

"The transfer market, it's not finished for sure, but we completed 60 per cent of our project in the transfer market. Now we have another bomba!" he said, hinting at at least one more headline arrival.

That “bomba” is widely expected to be Savinho. The Brazilian is understood to be pushing Manchester City to approve a move to north London, a switch that would load even more firepower into an attack already reshaped at significant cost.

De Zerbi’s shopping list is not just about names, though. It is about profiles. Specifically, wide players who can bend themselves around his demanding use of full-backs.

"A winger can be a very wide winger, one able to come inside, a winger without a full-back, a winger able to play with the full-back," he explained, outlining the tactical puzzle he is assembling.

Full-backs at the heart of the plan

For De Zerbi, everything starts from the flanks behind the winger. He did not hold back when assessing his options there.

"We have four great full-backs at the moment, maybe the four most important full-backs in the world, because I think Pedro Porro is the best right-back in the world, with [Destiny] Udogie, [Andy] Robertson, and Djed Spence can play right and left.

"Before bringing in a winger, we have to consider the full-back, because we start from the full-back, from the player we already have, no?"

It is a revealing line. Spurs’ transfer business is being built from the back, not in terms of centre-backs, but in terms of how the full-backs dictate the entire attacking structure. Any winger arriving must fit that architecture or not arrive at all.

Asked if the next deal was close, De Zerbi kept the tension high. "I hope, but it's not finished for sure."

The message: expect more. And expect it soon.

Respecting Romero’s exit route

While Tottenham look to add, they are also bracing for a significant departure. De Zerbi has made it clear he will not block captain Cristian Romero from returning to Serie A, with Inter sporting director Piero Ausilio already confirming talks over a move to San Siro.

"Romero as a player is one of the best centre-backs in the world, but at the end I said I want to respect the will of the players," De Zerbi said.

He revealed that the groundwork for this summer’s churn was laid months ago, in one-to-one meetings with his squad back in April.

"I said: 'Help me to stay up, and then I help you to leave'. If you don't help me to stay up, you stay underwater with me!"

Romero, he stressed, kept his side of the bargain.

"But Romero with me was unbelievable. Top. In his behaviour, his respect, he suffered when he did not play the last game. It is not true that he wanted to leave for Argentina to prepare for their World Cup. It's not true."

The defence of his captain was sharp, pointed. De Zerbi is willing to sanction exits, but not to let narratives run wild around those who have delivered for him.

Harsh lessons, hard rules

If Romero’s path looks clear, the situation is different for emerging talents like Lucas Bergvall and Djed Spence. Both are attracting interest, both sit on the edge of De Zerbi’s plans, and both have been given a stark choice.

"If they stay, they have to stay following my rules, decisions on the pitch," he warned.

"After two games, three games, if one player is not playing and he starts to be sad or not correct with the other players, the coaches, staff, the club, we would make a big, big mistake because we didn't learn from the past season."

No grey areas there. Spurs’ new era will be built on strict standards as much as on big fees. Anyone staying must accept rotation, accept competition, and accept his authority.

For now, De Zerbi’s reshaped squad turns towards the pitch, not the boardroom. Pre-season brings Chelsea on Saturday, an early test of how quickly his “shark” work in the market can translate into something more dangerous on the grass.