Tottenham Hotspur sit 11th in the 2026/27 Premier League table heading into the November international break after 10 matches played, and they are coming off a momentum destroying 1-0 loss to Leeds United at Elland Road. But despite the sour start overall, Spurs three game winning streak and the fact that they are significantly higher than the 17th place they finished in the previous two seasons shows that Roberto De Zerbi is doing something right.
Spurs are having no trouble defending, playing in possession, pressing, and dominating most of their opponents. They are literally first in the Premier League in passes in the final third; they are in the top three in duels won, possession, passing accuracy, tackles won, clean sheets, and possession won in the final third; and they are in the top five in shots attempted, progressive passes, and touches in the opponent's box.
Those are highly impressive numbers and speak to the brilliance in defense, midfield, ball progression, ball winning, and final third pressure that make a great team great. But what is holding back Spurs from being a great team and in the top half of the Premier League table is the fact that they are in the bottom three in the league in goals scored - and 17th in expected goals. They are in the top 10 in totals chances created, and their placement of 12th in big chances created is not the worst either - but it is below their ranking and well below their other stats.
Roberto De Zerbi can't work magic on everything
All of that paints a clear picture for Tottenham Hotspur. What ails Spurs is a lack of attacking quality. They are not scoring goals, and while they are underperforming their xG, their xG is also terrible and below their chance creation numbers.
That means Spurs are creating chances but creating low quality chances, and when they do create big chances, they are not putting them away. And even their big chances, well, really might not be all that big anyway.
Tottenham have great midfielders and defenders who can progress, win the ball, and create basic chances. But with James Maddison out injured, nobody is stepping up as a gilt-edged chance creator. And they obviously don't have a prolific striker. De Zerbi has created a juggernaut by the numbers in terms of passing, pressing, defensive, and possession based dominance. But Spurs can't complete the picture because they lack that quality - quality you can't coach.
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