Roberto De Zerbi has warned he has no time for any negativity among his Tottenham players after they were denied the chance to climb out of the relegation zone by an injury-time equaliser from his former club Brighton.
Georginio Rutter’s injury-time strike made it 15 games without a victory for Spurs after they had twice led, through Pedro Porro then Xavi Simons. The draw left Tottenham in the bottom three and a point behind West Ham before they travel to Crystal Palace on Monday night. Nottingham Forest, one point ahead of the Hammers, host Burnley on Sunday.
De Zerbi could not hide his disappointment with the result but was enthused by his side’s performance. He made the bold prediction that they were capable of winning their last five matches but admitted that would rely on his players continuing to show the belief that they can prevent the club being relegated for the first time since 1977.
“I always thought and believed in the quality of the players. In this moment we need this spirit, this attitude, this mentality. It’s not finished yet,” he said. “Everyone of us knows it’s a tough moment, it’s a difficult situation. Now it’s difficult to hear my words. But if you watch the players, if you analyse the level of the players, I think we can win five games in a row. Not to be arrogant, because I’m not arrogant now, especially now. But we have the qualities enough to fight and to win games in a row.”
Asked if his players were dejected after conceding such a late goal, De Zerbi added: “No. They have to follow me and not think and listen to me. They have to listen to me. They have to be stronger and come to the training ground on Monday afternoon with a smile, because otherwise they go home immediately. I have no time to see negative people, to see sad players or sad assistants. No, we are lucky because we are working in a big club, a big stadium. We are working in the Premier League. We have the qualities, the right qualities to win the game. So we have to be positive, because I don’t like the people who cry, who think in a negative way.”
Fabian Hürzeler compared Kaoru Mitoma’s opening goal for his side to Marco van Basten’s volley for the Netherlands against the USSR in the 1988 European Championship final when he wasn’t even born. But the 33-year-old backed Tottenham to escape relegation under De Zerbi, whom he succeeded as Brighton manager in 2024.
“I think they have unbelievable players in their squad,” he said. “They have in their front line players who can make a difference in one action, and that’s what they showed today.”
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