De Zerbi given three-point plan to avoid Tottenham relegation, with brave selection call expected | OneFootball

Jamie O’Hara has told Roberto De Zerbi what three things must be done to guarantee Tottenham’s Premier League status, and one under-used Spurs player is critical to those hopes.

De Zerbi is the man Tottenham have turned to to embark on a bright new chapter, though his initial remit is to simply avoid relegation.

While dropping a division may still be unthinkable to some, it’s important to note Spurs haven’t won a single league game in 2026.

Their record in the calendar year so far reads zero wins, five draws and eight defeats. Six of those losses have come in Tottenham’s last seven games, over which the club are on the wrong end of an eye-opening 17-5 aggregate scoreline.

Clearly, Tottenham are a genuine contender to go down unless De Zerbi can work his magic from day one.

And according to former Spurs midfielder and talkSPORT host, Jamie O’Hara, there’s three things De Zerbi can do from day one to give Tottenham’s survival chances an immediate boost.

“First and foremost, he needs to get the formation right,” declared O’Hara when speaking on Sky Sports News. “Stick to a formation, don’t change it. I would go 4-2-3-1, so that would be my first thing.

“Then don’t change the formation. There’s been too many times Igor Tudor tinkered, 3-4-3, 4-4-2, you know, all over the place. Players were confused, didn’t know what they’re doing, so that would be the first thing.

“Then, get the best out of Xavi Simons. We spent 60 million pound on him, he’s a top player, he can play, he can make the difference, he is someone who will rise to the occasion if you give him the confidence to do it.

“And then the third thing I would do is get hold of the leadership group, whoever that is, whether it’s Romero, Van de Ven, Maddison, the guys in there, the experienced players, the internationals, get them on side.

“Get them on side early and say, ‘Are you up for the fight? Are you in this?’. I need you on side because we’ve seen too many times that the players have capitulated like against Nottingham Forest when you could see their heads go down.

“You’ve got to give them belief. Give them the confidence to go out there and know that they are good players, because some of them are top players.”

The call to give Simons a more prominent role is perhaps the most intriguing suggestion of the three.

The Dutchman has struggled and looked out of his depth at times during his first campaign in the Premier League. Nevertheless, his talent is unquestionable, even if he was overlooked by former boss Tudor.

Simons did not start any of Tottenham’s last three league games while Tudor was at the helm, though that streak could be snapped next time out at Sunderland.

A trip to the north east on April 12 is first up for Simons and De Zerbi. After that, Tottenham round out the season with clashes against Brighton, Wolves, Aston Villa, Leeds United, Chelsea and Everton.