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Ex-Bundesliga stars in the thick of it! Club spends €366m, is bottom
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- Ex-Bundesliga stars in the thick of it! Club spends €366m, is bottom
Ex-Bundesliga stars in the thick of it! Club spends €366m, is bottom
"He's simply not good enough. I don't know why everyone acts like he's a solid player. He's absolutely awful." That criticism hits hard! Former Spurs pro Jamie O'Hara had seen enough after last weekend's defeat against Newcastle (0-2). He especially laid into former Bayern player Mathys Tel after the final whistle.
It was about his free kick in the 68th minute, which flew well over the goal because he didn't strike it properly. Tel took plenty of flak for that. "Oh my God! That is one of the worst free kicks I have ever seen," O'Hara also told 'talksport'.
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Here you can watch the highlights of the match in the video.
But putting the defeat on Tel alone would be too simplistic. After all, Tottenham spent 366 (!) million euros this summer on new players (source: 'transfermarkt.de') in order to put last season behind them and make another push. On the other hand, they brought in "only" 164 million, leaving them with a transfer deficit of 202 million euros.
After the Premier League club only just avoided relegation in the 2025/26 season, the aim now was to challenge near the top of the table again. The Spurs alone shelled out more than 200 million euros for Sandro Tonali and Mateus Fernandes. On top of that, there are several loan players, including Omar Marmoush from Manchester City. The former Frankfurt man was in the starting lineup against Newcastle and played more than 90 minutes.
He too was unable to prevent a second straight defeat. As a result, Roberto De Zerbi's team is already under pressure early on and sitting bottom of the table.
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So what is currently going wrong? "That is the biggest problem, it is the biggest challenge, and the most important goal is to find the right mindset," said De Zerbi. "You do not find the right mindset on the transfer market. Football is something magical: you can change many players and immediately find the right balance, or you simply need more time. I want to achieve this goal as quickly as possible, and I have no doubt that we will achieve it."
As many as five new signings were in Tottenham's starting lineup against Newcastle, so it is hardly surprising that the team's automatisms have not clicked yet. De Zerbi too knows how the football business works and is therefore asking for more time.
However, because of last season, the coach is already under pressure early on. It is questionable whether he will be given enough time to shape the team accordingly. If the results do not come, De Zerbi could soon be fearing for his job. In that case, Tel's botched free kick would not just have been a mishap on the pitch, but a symbol of a completely failed start to the season.
This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.
