How De Zerbi Is Rebuilding Tottenham’s Tactics

De Zerbi’s Tottenham blueprint takes shape

Roberto De Zerbi’s Spurs project entered its first full season with a clear objective: fix Tottenham’s structural problems and build an identity that can compete at the top of the Premier League. The early signs suggested that De Zerbi was fixing Spurs not through a revolution of personnel but through a detailed and demanding tactical framework designed to maximise record signings Mateus Fernandes and Sandro Tonali while reshaping the team’s behaviour with and without the ball.

PedTalks research indicates that Tottenham’s hierarchy viewed this campaign as the moment when De Zerbi could finally move from rescue job to long term architect. His work so far showed why.

Positional play with De Zerbi’s signature twists

De Zerbi arrived at Spurs with a well defined reputation. His teams built from the back under pressure, invited opponents forward, then attacked quickly through well drilled patterns. At Tottenham he kept the core principles but adapted them to Premier League realities and to a squad still in transition.

In possession Spurs operated from a nominal back four but frequently formed a three two structure in the first phase. One full back stayed deeper to join the central defenders and one of the holding midfielders dropped alongside them. The other pivot and Tonali formed a double midfield reference point ahead of the line of three.

The goalkeeper was central to this build up. Tottenham circulated the ball patiently across the back line, deliberately provoking pressure. When opponents pressed aggressively Spurs used vertical passes into Tonali or Fernandes between the lines, followed by quick lay offs to wide runners. When teams held their shape and refused to jump, Spurs pushed the full backs higher and allowed Fernandes to drift into half spaces to overload the flanks.

The key difference from more traditional possession approaches lay in Spurs’ willingness to stand on the ball and wait. De Zerbi’s structure invited forwards to commit. Centre backs and pivots received in tight situations and trusted their technical quality to play through. This approach had risks, but it created exactly the sort of space Spurs wanted to attack.

Building around Fernandes and Tonali

The arrivals of Mateus Fernandes and Sandro Tonali symbolised the new era. Both transfers represented a major financial commitment and both players sat at the heart of De Zerbi’s tactical plan.

Tonali played as the primary controller in midfield. His strengths were clear: range of passing, tempo management, and the ability to play forward under pressure. De Zerbi positioned him as the reference point between defence and attack. When Spurs built from the back, Tonali often received with his back to goal, then either bounced the ball first time to a more advanced teammate or shifted play to the far side with diagonals.

Out of possession Tonali anchored the midfield press. Spurs stepped up in coordinated waves, usually triggered when the opponent played into wide areas or when a backward pass arrived at a centre back. Tonali’s task was to screen passes into the number ten zone and to shuttle across behind the pressing eight. His reading of the game allowed full backs to be more aggressive.

Fernandes was used higher up as the main creative fulcrum. Rather than staying fixed as a classic playmaker, he drifted into the right half space or pulled wider to combine with the full back and winger. As the opposition squeezed central zones to close Tonali, Fernandes found pockets behind their midfield line. His ability to turn and carry the ball attracted defenders, which opened channels for the striker and weak side winger.

PedTalks team sources suggest that De Zerbi and his staff spent significant time on rotation patterns between Fernandes, the right sided winger, and the overlapping full back. The triangle on that side became a key attacking weapon, generating cut backs and late box entries from the far side midfielder.

Solving the low block problem

One of Tottenham’s chronic issues in recent seasons had been breaking down deep defensive blocks. De Zerbi’s system addressed this more through structure and spacing than through individual brilliance.

Against low blocks Spurs adopted a wide five lane occupation. Both wingers held width on the touchline, both full backs stepped into the half spaces, and Fernandes occupied the zone between opposition midfield and defence. Tonali stayed deeper to recycle possession and guard against counter attacks.

This structure created constant horizontal stretching of the back line. With full backs in the half spaces, Spurs could form passing diamonds on both sides, allowing one touch combinations to unbalance defenders. Crosses became the final pass in patterns aimed at cut back zones or far post overloads.

Even against deep blocks Spurs sometimes recycled all the way back to the goalkeeper. The intention was to lure at least one forward out, break the first line, then attack a defence that was slightly less compact.

The search for the right striker profile

While the tactical framework around midfield and build up looked increasingly coherent, one major question remained: which striker profile suited De Zerbi’s Tottenham best.

Reports suggest Spurs explored forwards comfortable playing with their back to goal, mobile enough to run channels, and technically secure enough to contribute to combination play. In De Zerbi’s model, the number nine was not just a finisher. He was the third man in many of the triangles that unlocked central spaces.

When the centre forward dropped between the lines, Fernandes could run beyond, and the wingers could attack the far post. When the striker stayed high, Fernandes received in pockets and threaded through balls. This variability was crucial to avoid predictability in the final third.

PedTalks research indicates that De Zerbi prioritised strikers with strong pressing metrics. Since Spurs often triggered their press from the front, the nine set the tone for the rest of the team.

Defensive growing pains and long term upside

Despite the clear progress in possession, Tottenham still experienced some defensive volatility. The commitment to build under pressure meant occasional high profile mistakes. The high positioning of full backs also left space behind them, especially in transition.

Over time, automatisms in rest defence improved. One of the pivots always held a position close to the centre backs, and the far side full back tucked in rather than pushing simultaneously. Spurs tried to maintain at least three players behind the ball whenever attacks developed on one flank.

The key insight from the opening phase of this season was that Tottenham finally had a coherent identity. De Zerbi was fixing Spurs not through pragmatism alone, but through a clear tactical project built on brave build up play, intelligent midfield use, and deliberate spacing against deep blocks. With Tonali and Fernandes central to the plan and recruitment increasingly aligned to the system, Spurs looked far closer to a team with a long term direction than at any point in recent years.