Roberto De Zerbi has revealed that he is using an interesting approach to instil some confidence into the Tottenham squad.
There has certainly been a marked improvement in Tottenham’s performances since De Zerbi walked through the door.
The Italian will feel his side deserved more to show for those three performances than the four points they have picked up in those matches.
De Zerbi has been adamant that one win could completely change things for Tottenham, and the Lilywhites finally got that win away at Wolves on Saturday to remain in touching distance of safety with four games left.
Roberto De Zerbi reveals he makes Tottenham players watch their own highlights on YouTube
The Spurs head coach’s strategy appears to be to reinforce to his players just how good they have been at different times in the past.
De Zerbi explained that he uses YouTube or Wyscout to remind them of their quality, revealing that he made Randal Kolo Muani watch what he did at Eintracht Frankfurt back in 2022-23.
The Tottenham boss said (via Football.London): “My words are not enough and I try to find the best solution to reach every player. Sometimes you arrive with a video, sometimes with words, sometimes with red win, or a beer. You have to find the balance. The balance between football and the improvement on the pitch because we play football. But I think the most important part for a player is [the head] and the heart.”
“It’s what they have done in their career, also in other clubs. If I play with [Randal] Kolo Muani as right winger, it’s because he has played in that position. If you go to YouTube and go to Kolo Muani Eintracht Frankfurt, you can see he played very well in that position and scored a lot of goals.
“When I don’t work in my office, I go to find something important for me to give more information about the players because we have no time and have to consider everything to stay up. I use YouTube or Wyscout to find the best solution for the players, not for me.”
De Zerbi insists he believes what he says about the quality of Spurs’ squad
Some may view the Italian’s complimentary words about his players as simply an aim to restore their confidence.
However, De Zerbi made it clear that he means what he says about the quality Tottenham have at their disposal despite the team’s continued struggles this season.
He added: “I am used to working in this way and I go to war for my ideas. I am honest and sincere and don’t like to say something when I don’t believe it. I am sure they are good players.
“I don’t know what happened in the past with the coaches before I came and I want to show them what they are very good at doing on the pitch, because they have incredible qualities and you have to put the focus on the qualities and not on their faults.
“Their qualities are enough to win the game and stay up. If you speak every day about the faults, the heads of the players stay on that and it’s not good. We have to be positive and remember what we are good at.”