Can De Zerbi keep Spurs up? Tottenham’s Premier League survival guide
The summer of 2025 was supposed to mark a new dawn for Tottenham Hotspur. Europa League winners, Champions League football secured, Son Heung-min politely waved off to Los Angeles, and a fresh-faced Thomas Frank installed to build something sustainable. Less than a year later, Spurs are 18th in the Premier League, 2 points away from safety after West Ham’s win over Wolves, and on their third manager of the season after Tudor’s disastrous 44-day cameo. It would be their first ever Premier League relegation if they were to go down.
Into this rather spectacular mess walks Roberto De Zerbi, armed with a five-year contract and, reportedly, a very handsome bonus if he keeps them up. The Italian has managed to engineer a situation where a job nobody else seemed to want has become, against all odds, one of the most fascinating storylines in European football right now.
🤝 OFFICIAL: ROBERTO DE ZERBI NAMED TOTTENHAM HEAD COACH ON LONG-TERM CONTRACT. ⚪
— 365Scores (@365Scores) March 31, 2026
The Italian tactician arrives in North London to begin a new era at the club.
Style, intensity, and a clear vision. Spurs are betting big. 🇮🇹🔥 pic.twitter.com/5kKjsbJvGO
Tottenham are in trouble… De Zerbi needs to save them
What De Zerbi brings to N17
De Zerbi helped Brighton secure their highest ever Premier League finish in his debut season at the club, earning European qualification for the first time in their history. At Marseille, the Ligue 1 side finished as runners-up in 2024/25, earning a spot in the UEFA Champions League.
The critical question, though, is whether he can do what he has never convincingly done before: take over a club mid-season and turn things around at pace. He failed to win any of his first nine games in charge of Benevento and won just one of his 13 games after taking over Palermo mid-season in 2016.
He is understood to be unwilling to overcomplicate things tactically given Spurs’ current predicament, instead simplifying the game model in order to give the players clarity. That pragmatic instinct is encouraging.
Fixtures: Tottenham could be ok…?
Seven games remain, beginning with a trip to Sunderland on April 12. A full look at the run-in: Sunderland away, Brighton at home, Wolves away, Aston Villa away, Leeds United at home, Chelsea away, Everton at home.
On paper, the opening three fixtures offer an opportunity. Sunderland have been inconsistent at home; Wolves are mired in their own relegation misery and Brighton at home will be fascinating given De Zerbi’s familiarity with the club and its personnel.
Spurs have an easier run-in than their relegation-battle rivals. The Leeds fixture on 9 May looms as a potential six-pointer that could define the entire season. If Spurs are still in danger by then, that match at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium will be as pressurised as anything they have experienced this year.
The final two games, Chelsea away and Everton at home, split neatly into one they must not lose and one they absolutely must win.
Tottenham can’t catch a break with injuries – they might finally have some good news
The international break offered something Spurs have lacked all season: time for their treatment room to thin out. Pape Matar Sarr and Mathys Tel both pulled out of international duty due to injury but are expected to be available for the trip to Sunderland on April 12th. Tel, in particular, had been one of the few bright spots before his groin issue, offering directness and creativity that no one else in the squad quite replicates.
De Zerbi could be further boosted by the return of both Mohammed Kudus and Guglielmo Vicario for the Brighton clash on April 18th. Rodrigo Bentancur could also return to action sometime before the end of April. The Uruguayan’s combative presence in midfield has been a glaring absence; Spurs have been too easy to play through without him.
The longer-term picture is slightly bleaker. Dejan Kulusevski has not played since last season due to a patella injury, Wilson Odobert faces a lengthy recovery after a serious knee injury that required surgery, and his return is unlikely before late 2026. James Maddison is progressing in his recovery from an ACL injury and could return in May, though whether he features at all in the run-in remains uncertain.
Luka Vuskovic is showing some AMAZING stats! On loan at Hamburg from Tottenham this season, can he become a starter for the Spurs next term? pic.twitter.com/jM6yy5ghTd
— 365Scores (@365Scores) April 7, 2026
Yet it all could still go wrong
The optimism around De Zerbi is legitimate, but the counterarguments are not trivial. His track record when parachuted into struggling mid-season situations is, at best, patchy. His expansive style, the very thing that makes him so appealing as a long-term appointment, can leave teams vulnerable at the back. Former Tottenham defender Tim Sherwood noted that his teams can be open and warned that Spurs cannot afford to get hammered between now and the end of the season.
Spurs remain the only Premier League club yet to win in 2026. That speaks to the deep psychological fragility in this squad that seven days of preparation cannot simply erase. A new manager can provide a short-term boost, but if results do not come quickly, the noise around the appointment, especially given the significant clamour over De Zerbi’s past comments regarding Mason Greenwood, will only grow louder.
The fixtures also contain two away trips to Aston Villa and Chelsea, which realistically offer little in terms of expected points. If Spurs drop points in the matches they ought to win, those two away days will haunt them.
Verdict
Tottenham have enough. Just. A more navigable run-in than their rivals, returning injury boosts arriving at the right time, and a manager with the tactical intelligence and force of personality to generate a reaction, at least in the short term. The Leeds game at home in May is circled. Win that, take care of Sunderland and Wolves, and survival is in Spurs’ own hands.
FAQs
Who is Tottenham’s current manager?
Roberto De Zerbi, appointed on a five-year contract in late March 2026, replacing interim head coach Igor Tudor.
Where do Tottenham currently sit in the Premier League?
17th, one point above the relegation zone with seven games remaining.
When is De Zerbi’s first game in charge?
Away at Sunderland on Sunday 12 April 2026.
What are Tottenham’s remaining fixtures?
Sunderland (away), Brighton (home), Wolves (away), Aston Villa (away), Leeds United (home), Chelsea (away), Everton (home).
What is Tottenham’s record in 2026?
As of early April, they are the only Premier League club without a win in calendar year 2026.
By Nicky Helfgott – NickyHelfgott1 on X (Twitter)
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