There is no doubt that starting the season without a single goal scored in four Premier League matches is profoundly disappointing and entirely unacceptable, especially after Spurs brought in three new attacking players of manager Roberto De Zerbi's choice.
But even as Spurs fans are frustrated with the lack of attacking production, the anger directed at De Zerbi is largely misplaced. Beyond the fact that De Zerbi was the one who turned Spurs around when they were doomed to be relegated, he has actually provided fans with tangible signs of improvement that need to be appreciated a little bit more.
For example, Tottenham started the season losing a combined 5-0 to Brentford and Newcastle United, and there were even improvements in possession from the Brentford debacle to the game against the Magpies. And now in the last two weeks, both 0-0 draws with Nottingham Forest and Everton, Spurs were the better team and in control of the game, showing defensive and midfield dominance. They were just unable to convert possession into chances created and goals.
Tottenham have been this bad for a while
There are key players in the attack who are not fully fit, like James Maddison and Mohammed Kudus. There are others who have not been fully integrated into the system, namely new signings Savio and Omar Marmoush. And while Roberto De Zerbi has made mistakes, including acquiring Mykhaylo Mudryk and freezing out Richarlison, it's not his fault Marmoush can't hit a barn door or that Mathys Tel has suddenly forgotten how to play football in the span of a month.
But failing to score goals is not a new problem for Tottenham Hotspur by any means. They were horrendous last season and pretty much where they are now as an offense: not scoring in most of their games or only able to scrounge out one goal. Their five against Charlton Athletic in the League Cup this season was better than almost any attacking performance against any opponent in the 2025/26 season, too.
There are real improvements from Tottenham when you look beyond the attack, because Spurs could not control games or defend last season. Now, they can at least do those two things under De Zerbi. The last remaining hurdle is the attack, but it's not like they were on fire for the last two seasons either. That Richarlison was their leading scorer playing as poorly as he did actually speaks volumes to the malaise - a malaise that was never going to be fixed in four short weeks.
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