Tottenham lost 3-0 to Brentford in the Premier League opener, and manager Roberto De Zerbi said he had warned of the club’s physical issues a week before the match. The Italian revealed that the side had been struggling with fitness after a late start to pre‑season and a squad that had returned from the World Cup.
"I knew last week that we were not at the right point in terms of physical condition for a lot of reasons," De Zerbi told Mirror Football. He added that the players had come back from the World Cup and arrived late for the pre‑season camp in Australia, leaving the team short on time to work on the right conditioning.
The first eleven for the match were unusually young, with four summer signings – including new arrivals – in the starting line‑up. De Zerbi admitted that the squad lost too many duels and failed to find the timing for high‑pressure play. "We lost too many duels. We didn’t find the right timing to go in the high pressure," he said.
Brentford struck early when Keane Lewis‑Potter broke the deadlock after 12 minutes. Vitaly Janelt added a second in the 50th minute and Michael Kayode finished the scoring in the 55th minute. Igor Thiago missed a penalty in the 55th minute, hitting the post.
Despite the loss, De Zerbi urged his players to stay confident ahead of the upcoming Carabao Cup tie at home to Charlton and the next Premier League fixture against Newcastle. "We can’t lose the confidence. We can’t lose what we created last season," he said.
The manager also reflected on the club’s summer spending, noting that Tottenham had invested £228 million and were expected to reach nearly £350 million with further signings. He said the club had been tipped to improve on back‑to‑back 17th‑place finishes.
"We have to improve, yes, we have to put something more than today, individually and collectively, but I think we are in the right situation to build something special," De Zerbi added. "The project has just started and I think we are working well. We need time, but we are in a good way."
The Italian concluded that the team must stay calm and focus on the improvements required. He highlighted the importance of maintaining momentum as Tottenham prepare for the next set of fixtures.
