De Zerbi apologises as Tottenham suffer humiliating 3-0 defeat at Brentford

By Johnson Arua

Tottenham Hotspur manager Roberto De Zerbi apologised to the club’s supporters after his expensively assembled side suffered a humiliating 3-0 defeat to Brentford in their Premier League opener on Saturday.

De Zerbi admitted Tottenham failed to show enough fight and were outplayed in crucial areas as Brentford secured a dominant victory at the Gtech Community Stadium.

The defeat marked Tottenham’s joint-heaviest opening-day loss in the Premier League era and came despite the club spending more than £200 million ($272 million) during the summer in an effort to strengthen a squad that narrowly avoided relegation to the Championship last season.

De Zerbi handed debuts to four new signings, with Sandro Tonali, Andrew Robertson, Marcos Senesi and Jan Paul van Hecke all starting, while Mateus Fernandes was introduced in the second half.

However, Tottenham struggled to cope with Brentford’s intensity, with Keane Lewis-Potter and Vitaly Janelt scoring in the first half before Michael Kayode added a third after the interval.

De Zerbi accepted responsibility for the poor performance and said his players failed to win enough physical battles.

“We didn’t play well. We didn’t fight in the right way,” De Zerbi said. “We lost too many duels, especially in the first half, when the game went in Brentford’s direction.”

The Italian manager also acknowledged that Tottenham’s physical condition was below the required level, particularly among players who joined the squad late.

“Our physical condition was not at the right level for all players because many came later after the World Cup,” he said, adding that Tonali, Senesi and van Hecke were not yet at their best.

The disappointing display triggered an angry reaction from Tottenham supporters, with many fans leaving the away section long before the final whistle.

Despite the setback, De Zerbi insisted he remained confident in his players and urged patience as his revamped squad works towards becoming a cohesive team.

“I believe in my players. I don’t lose confidence in my players and these people,” he said.

Tottenham captain Archie Gray, who became the youngest captain in the club’s history at the age of 20, admitted the team had no excuses for the defeat.

“There’s no excuses, to be honest. Today we got out-fought,” Gray said. “We’ve got work to do. It’s not the start we wanted.”