Tottenham’s summer upheaval: De Zerbi’s potential starting XI
Tottenham stared into the abyss on the final day of last season. Survival secured, yes, but only just, and Roberto De Zerbi did not pretend otherwise. The Italian walked through the doors promising upheaval, and he has wasted little time turning that threat into a plan.
This is not a tweak. It is a rebuild.
A new spine, or a new goalkeeper?
The first big decision sits in goal. Guglielmo Vicario, so impressive for much of last season, ended the campaign on the treatment table after hernia surgery and has yet to play a single minute under De Zerbi. Around him, the noise grows. Inter Milan are circling, a return to Serie A tempting for a 29‑year‑old who suddenly finds his status at Spurs uncertain.
While Vicario recovered, Antonin Kinsky stepped in and did more than simply keep the gloves warm. He helped steady a defence that had been creaking under pressure, played his part in dragging Spurs over the line, and gave De Zerbi something managers love: a credible internal alternative.
So the club hovers between two paths. Keep faith with Kinsky and back the man who delivered when it mattered, or move for a new No1. Manchester City’s James Trafford has been on the radar for some time and is desperate for regular football, but interest has not yet hardened into talks. For now, the projected XI for August leans towards Trafford as the fresh face between the posts, a symbol of the reset De Zerbi craves.
Defence ripped up and rewritten
If the goalkeeping call is still in the balance, the backline is already being torn down and rebuilt.
Cristian Romero, captain and lightning rod, looks increasingly likely to move on. De Zerbi has not waited to see how that saga ends. He has gone after defenders he trusts, defenders with scars and medals, players who can drag standards up by force of personality.
Jan Paul van Hecke has arrived to reunite with his former coach and, at £52million, is not coming to sit on the bench. The plan is clear: Van Hecke alongside Micky van de Ven at centre-back, a Dutch pairing to anchor the new era. Van de Ven has admirers elsewhere and could yet be tempted away, but De Zerbi is pushing hard to keep him and even views him as a potential captain if Romero walks.
Out wide, the picture is more stable. Pedro Porro, fresh from signing a new long-term deal, remains first-choice right-back and a key attacking outlet. On the left, Destiny Udogie still owns the shirt, with Andy Robertson brought in from Liverpool to add depth, know-how and a ruthless streak in training that this squad has badly lacked. Robertson’s presence alone raises the level; Udogie will have to earn every start.
Midfield built around Tonali dream
The heart of De Zerbi’s football has always been the midfield. Tottenham know they need more authority there, more calm on the ball and more bite without it. That is why Sandro Tonali sits at the top of their wishlist.
Tonali would not come cheap. Newcastle will demand a substantial fee, and Spurs know it. De Zerbi, though, is a long-time admirer and sees the Italian as the conductor his side currently lacks. If the deal can be done, Tonali would likely sit alongside Rodrigo Bentancur at the base of midfield, a pairing that blends craft, aggression and the passing range to launch attacks from deep.
There is also interest in West Ham’s Mateus Fernandes as the club scours the market for extra legs and versatility in the middle. But the whole plan pivots on Tonali. Land him, and the shape of the team changes. Miss out, and De Zerbi’s first-choice XI suddenly looks far less imposing.
Attacking overhaul on a tightrope
Up front, the problems are different but just as stark. Injuries shredded Spurs’ attacking options last season, leaving De Zerbi to juggle patched-up forwards and emergency solutions. He cannot fix everything in one window, yet the club knows it needs at least one, probably two, new threats in the final third.
Savinho, the Manchester City winger, has been a long-term target. Talks have been reopened and the Brazilian is keen to leave in search of regular minutes. His direct running and one‑v‑one ability would give Spurs a dimension they have lacked on the flank.
Then there is Marcus Rashford. Out of favour at Manchester United and seemingly with no future at Old Trafford, his name has now been thrown into the Tottenham conversation. For a club trying to reinvent itself, a hungry Rashford with a point to prove is an enticing prospect. The risk is obvious; the upside, enormous.
Behind them, James Maddison is back. His late-season return from injury offered a glimpse of what he can still be as the No10, the creative hub threading passes into runners ahead of him. Dejan Kulusevski, by contrast, remains a worry. His fitness issues have robbed Spurs of continuity on the right and leave De Zerbi unable to fully rely on him as a starter.
One name looms in the proposed XI: Dominic Solanke, the focal point up front. A classic De Zerbi centre-forward profile – mobile, technically secure, able to link play and finish – and the type of striker the manager has been urged to sign. If that pursuit succeeds, Tottenham’s attack suddenly looks far more coherent.
The XI that could walk out on August 22
If the window breaks in their favour, if the big deals land and the exits fall into place, Tottenham’s starting line-up on the opening day could look radically different from the side that clung to safety.
A potential De Zerbi XI: Trafford; Porro, Van Hecke, Van de Ven, Udogie; Bentancur, Tonali; Savinho, Maddison, Rashford; Solanke.
That is not evolution. That is surgery.
De Zerbi has money to spend, but not infinite time. Every choice now carries weight: which positions to fix first, which stars to chase, which loyal servants to let go. Get it right, and Spurs emerge from a brush with relegation as one of the Premier League’s most intriguing projects. Get it wrong, and this summer of ambition could simply reset the clock on another season of anxiety.
