Tottenham Hotspur have not won a single game in the 2026/27 Premier League season, and they are having a serious issue with finishing their chances. Spurs have only scored two goals in five Premier League matches, and those goals were scored by a center back and a center midfielder in their 3-2 loss to Aston Villa this past weekend.
Spurs are dominating possession and taking a lot of shots, but they just aren't finding the back of the net. And while attackers like Omar Marmoush and Dominic Solanke can and should be criticized for not finishing the chances they are getting, there is actually a bigger, deeper root cause that needs to be addressed by manager Roberto De Zerbi.
While a lot of the criticisms of De Zerbi are outrageous and not even true, there are valid criticisms to be had of a manager who, while getting his team to play better tactically and aesthetically, still has not won a game in five.
Tottenham are not creating quality chances
It is worth noting that according to analytics provided by Sky Sports, via The Spurs Web, Tottenham have the joint lowest expected goals per shot in the Premier League this season. They are averaging 0.07 expected goals per shot attempt they take, and the only team just as bad as them is Everton.
That means that every time Tottenham Hotspur take a shot, there is only a seven percent chance that specific shot has of being a goal. So in order to guarantee one goal per game, Tottenham are having to take 14 shots per match.
That logic actually checks out. While Spurs have been a bit unlucky, they are taking around 10-15 shots per game and barely scoring, so though there is that element of luck against them, Spurs have made their own bad luck by taking bad, low percentage shots.
And anyone who watches Tottenham can see this is the case. They have the ball and are taking shots, but they are not getting in good positions to shoot, clearly missing their main No. 10's in James Maddison and Xavi Simons.
Tottenham could be finishing the chances they do get better, though, because even with a terrible xG per shot attempt average, they should still be getting close to a goal per game instead of two goals in five games, which is only 0.4 goals per game. De Zerbi can't control how Dominic Solanke, Omar Marmoush, and the forwards finish their chances, but he can change the quality of the chances they do get. And that's something for him to put his mind to during this September break.
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