De Zerbi's Spurs 'didn't play like a top team' — and the numbers agree

Leeds United beat Tottenham Hotspur 1-0 at Elland Road on 7 November 2026, Noah Okafor scoring the only goal in the 79th minute. Roberto De Zerbi's side had 61 per cent of the ball. They also had seven shots to Leeds' 16, and an expected-goals figure of 0.77 against 2.02. The scoreline was narrow. The chance creation was not.

De Zerbi did not hide behind the possession. He said his side played well in the first half but deserved to lose the second, that they "didn't play like a top team" and lacked "the right spirit, the right character, the right physicality in the duels."

The numbers from this match sit awkwardly beside Spurs' season so far. Across their earlier 2026/27 matches in all competitions, they averaged 19.4 shots, 36.2 touches in the opposition box and 1.65 expected goals. At Elland Road they managed 7.0 shots, 18.0 touches in the box and 0.77 xG. Their corners dropped from an average of 8.8 to 4.0. One match is not a trend, but the direction of travel in this one was unmistakable: a side that had been creating volume created almost nothing.

That is the context for the comparison that will follow De Zerbi around. Mauricio Pochettino's 2016/17 Tottenham took 2.26 points per game across a 38-game season, with 26 wins, eight draws and four defeats. De Zerbi's current side have 3W 3D 3L from nine, a return of 1.33 points per game. The two numbers are not a like-for-like measure — different squads, different eras, different competitions — but they frame the question Spurs face. Pochettino, now announcing USMNT squads, built a side that knew its own shape. De Zerbi is still looking for his.

The summer turnover offers part of the explanation. Sandro Tonali, Mateus Fernandes, Tosin Adarabioyo, Jan Paul van Hecke, Marcos Senesi and Omar Marmoush arrived. Yves Bissouma, Pape Sarr, Alfie Devine, Kevin Danso, Ashley Phillips and Cristian Romero left. That is a significant rebuild of the spine, and the balance Pochettino once had does not return simply because the cheques cleared. De Zerbi's own language — spirit, character, physicality — points at something that signings alone do not fix.

Leeds deserved the win on the chance volume. They had four big chances to Spurs' one, and Trafford's save from van Hecke was the exception in a second half where the visitors chased rather than controlled. De Zerbi's booking means he will watch the Ipswich match from the stands, and how Spurs respond without him on the touchline will say something about whether this was a bad afternoon or a structural problem.

The result leaves Spurs on 1.33 points per game, well short of the 2.26 Pochettino's side managed. Whether that gap is about the squad, the system or the manager is not yet settled.