Tottenham Hotspur defeated second rate side Charlton Athletic 5-1 in the Second Round of the 2026/27 League Cup, making quite the statement with Savio contributing to two goals off the bench as Spurs immediately bounced back from a 3-0 opening defeat on the road to Brentford. But all of that positive energy dissipated with a 2-0 loss to Newcastle United, and Spurs did not score in their subsequent two Premier League outings either.
And now, Tottenham are out of the League Cup, stumbling 3-1 on the road at Anfield against a stronger Liverpool side. While the result was nothing less than many expected, it still stings greatly for Tottenham, and it is an early exit for Roberto De Zerbi that seemingly puts the embattled manager under even more pressure.
The thing is, the pressure on De Zerbi is only in narrative and from the national media outside of Spurs. Because the Spurs fans and the organization itself have to be fully backing De Zerbi even more after actually watching and contextualizing the Liverpool match.
Roberto De Zerbi had Tottenham playing the better overall football
Because Tottenham were, for many stretches of the game, the better side. The xG battle favors them more than the final score does, and while that is little consolation in a knockout tie that leads to Spurs sitting at home early in the cup season, it does mean, progonisting the future, that there are still more positive signs that negative ones for Spurs.
Unlike Tottenham Hotspur under Thomas Frank, for example, there is clear progress being made in terms of how Spurs actually play and a real identity to their style. Plus, Tottenham were some miracle saves away and miracle goals from Liverpool away from potentially winning the game, and while that will sound like cope to some, for those who did watch the actual match, Tottenham did have the ball. And while they could have been more positive with it, they suffered similarly against Liverpool as they did against lesser teams in Everton and Nottingham Forest, having more shots and more possession but ultimately lacking in final third quality - and a bit of luck.
Roberto De Zerbi is clearly not to blame for the missed chances, the great saves from the Liverpool goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili, or the tough goals from the home team. But he is the one to praise for the tactics, the control of the game, the great defending, and the possession. De Zerbi is doing good things for Tottenham, and those who are actually paying attention can appreciate the real problem is on the execution of the players, not on the man's ideas.
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