Roberto De Zerbi has a clear and specific reason for pushing Tottenham to spend £185m on Sandro Tonali and Mateus Fernandes this summer – and it comes down to what happens long before the ball reaches the final third.
According to Football London’s Alasdair Gold, the Italian head coach’s priority from the moment he arrived at Hotspur Way was improving build-up play and ball retention across the pitch – not just sharpening Spurs in the attacking third. Two 17th-place finishes will focus the mind on basics.
The Problem De Zerbi Was Hired to Fix
Spurs have spent recent windows accumulating athletic destroyers and forwards without ever solving the structural issue underneath: they couldn’t keep the ball or progress it under pressure. De Zerbi’s response, as reported by Gold, was direct: “I want to improve build-up because normally you are focused on the last 30m, but you can improve the last 30m if you play better in the first 70m.”
His system depends on baiting the opposition press, drawing opponents out of shape, then playing through or around them – which demands midfielders who are comfortable on the ball in tight spaces and can both carry and pass progressively. The existing options at the club weren’t built for that.
What the Numbers Say
Gold’s piece uses per-90 data to illustrate the upgrade. Tonali completed 46.7 passes per 90 last season – more than any Spurs midfielder managed across the entire campaign. Fernandes completed 40.7 at 87.5% accuracy, which placed him third overall but with the highest accuracy of the group.
The progressive passing numbers are where the gap becomes uncomfortable reading for anyone who watched Spurs last season. Fernandes averaged 6.5 line-breaking passes per 90 at West Ham; Tonali managed 6.0. Joao Palhinha was the club’s best-performing midfielder in that category and managed 4.5. In the final third, Fernandes led with 3.7 per 90, Tonali on 3.3, while Bentancur and Palhinha were down at 1.5 and 1.6 respectively.
Both also carry the ball effectively – Tonali at 6.1 progressive carries per 90, Fernandes at 4.9 – and both rank well defensively, with possession won around 5.2 and 5.4 times per 90. The numbers describe all-round midfielders built for a system that demands control, not just energy.
Whether the Money Makes Sense
The fee structure, as Gold reports, runs to £85m for Fernandes from West Ham – breaking the club record – and up to £100m for Tonali from Newcastle, immediately surpassing it. That is a significant commitment to a head coach who has been at the club for a matter of months, and it reflects the degree of recruitment influence De Zerbi was handed when he signed his deal.
Whether £185m buys Spurs out of structural mediocrity depends entirely on De Zerbi translating his tactical principles from training ground to matchday. The logic is sound. The track record of big Spurs midfield investments converting cleanly into results is, to put it gently, mixed. We’ll see.
