Tottenham XI to be chosen by Roberto De Zerbi next season if they make dream next three signings | OneFootball

Tottenham Hotspur needed to change their approach after getting excruciatingly close to being relegated from the Premier League, and for better or worse, they are pulling out all the stops in this transfer window.

Ange Postecoglou is one of a few former Tottenham managers to lament their previous lack of ambition in the transfer market, but Roberto De Zerbi has already got club chiefs to dig deeper into their pockets than Jose Mourinho or Antonio Conte managed.

This is partly because De Zerbi came into Tottenham with all of the power and clearly took advantage of the club’s vulnerable Premier League position in negotiations to replace Igor Tudor.

The current second-best-paid manager in the Premier League penned a five-year deal with no exit clause when Tottenham were at their lowest, and it has also become increasingly apparent in recent months that he was given assurances of their transfer activity ahead of next season.

Despite their ‘Spursy’ reputation and lack of European football, Tottenham, especially with De Zerbi, remain a club with immense pulling power as a London-based Big Six club with extraordinary revenue and a state-of-the-art stadium.

And the north London outfit have finally started to use these factors to their advantage in this window, though they have clearly been guilty of overspending to fend off competition from Manchester United, Arsenal and Manchester City to land some of their summer targets.

Tottenham started the window by focusing on a defensive rebuild and sealed two sensible free transfers, securing the services of Andy Robertson and Marcos Senesi following their exits from Liverpool and AFC Bournemouth.

And after landing Martin Dubravka on a free transfer to provide cover between the sticks, Tottenham completed their business at the back with Brighton star Jan Paul van Hecke.

At a fee of £52m, Tottenham certainly overpaid to sign a very good Premier League centre-back entering the final year of his contract at Brighton, and they did the same to land Matheus Fernandes and Sandro Tonali from West Ham and Newcastle United.

Initially, Fernandes and Tonali looked far more likely to move to other Big Six clubs, but, unlike rival clubs, Spurs were undeterred by lofty valuations and paid what was required to land the two midfielders from under the noses of other teams.

Tottenham have really gone from one end of the spectrum to the other regarding their approach to transfers in this window. While it is unsustainable and surely unlikely to continue at such a degree for much longer, it has at least given the club an immediate and much-needed shot in the arm ahead of De Zerbi’s first full season in charge.

And more may yet be to come in the next few weeks…

Tottenham ‘dream XI’ under Roberto De Zerbi

With talkSPORT reporting that Tottenham have already picked out their next three signings to complete their ‘dream XI’ after splashing out £185m to land Van Hecke, Fernandes and Tonali, here’s how they *could* line up under De Zerbi next season.

As mentioned, Dubravka has been brought in as a back-up in goal, and despite reports linking Spurs with several potential new No.1s, Antonin Kinsky looks set to remain De Zerbi’s first-choice goalkeeper after impressing during the 2025/26 run-in.

It is a remarkable turnaround for Kinsky, whose Tottenham career looked doomed to fail, a la Loris Karius at Liverpool, after he was hung out to dry by Tudor against Atletico Madrid.

And ahead of him should be a new-look back four consisting of Pedro Porro, Van Hecke, Micky van de Ven and Robertson.

Reports have suggested that Djed Spence and/or Cristian Romero could leave to raise funds, but Tottenham’s summer business means they will still have plenty of options at the back, and Senesi will certainly have plenty of minutes as he competes with Van Hecke and Van de Ven.

And Tottenham’s incredibly expensive midfield now picks itself following the arrivals of Tonali and Fernandes, and again, there is now quality cover in this department with Rodrigo Bentancur, Conor Gallagher and Archie Gray still in the building.

Fit-again James Maddison, who was sorely missed in the 2025/26 campaign, will likely be back playing a key role for Tottenham next season as part of a refurbished attack.

As alluded to above, Tottenham have three ‘dream’ signings in mind for the remainder of this window, and Savinho, Cody Gakpo and Junior Kroupi could complete their XI if De Zerbi and Co. get their way.

In reality, clubs rarely get the dream outcome in transfer windows and a re-think should be required at some stage, with AC Milan’s Rafael Leao among the alternatives mentioned.

But with Dejan Kulusevski and Xavi Simons also in the mix once they are back fit, the picture at Tottenham suddenly looks a whole lot rosier.

They are already far better equipped than last season to cope with an injury crisis, and a Manchester United-esque season of pushing for Champions League qualification should be their expectation next term without European football.