After Tottenham Hotspur's 0-0 home draw against Everton in Week 4 of the Premier League, Spurs manager De Zerbi attended the press conference to answer media questions.

Roberto, you started the game at a very fast pace with great pressure, and the first 20 minutes looked fantastic. Why didn't this advantage translate into goals?

I'm very honest. I've always been honest with you, right? When we play badly, I say directly that we played badly. But every time I come to the press room, 99% of the time I'm honest with the players and the club. I've said that we started this season very late for many reasons, but it was indeed too late. Many players participated in the World Cup, and we had many injury problems. Matheus Fernandes, Micky van de Ven, and Dominic Solanke all got injured during the training camp in Australia. This is not our fault or the club's fault, but Savio and Marmoush arrived relatively late, and I only started working with this team on Thursday two weeks ago. So I think we are not yet fully prepared physically.

I think we played very well in the first 30 minutes, but then perhaps our physical condition declined, or perhaps some players lost confidence due to not scoring for a long time. We cannot be blindly optimistic; we must remain realistic. If we can extend those 30 minutes of good play to 60, 70, 80, or even 90 minutes, then in my opinion we can win many games. We must improve in the attacking third, that's for sure. The final decision-making and final pass must all improve. We must increase our shot count, especially when we have space and time—we must shoot with a decisive mentality.

But I cannot blame the team at all, because I know the lads train very hard. I think we are on the right track. It is difficult to explain, because four consecutive games without a goal are hard to accept. We apologize to the fans, but the fans supported the players today, and the atmosphere in the stadium was particularly enthusiastic when we played well in the first 30 minutes. Then, like me and every Tottenham Hotspur fan and everyone at the club, we all felt sad because we entered the opponent's penalty area 75 times but had very few shots, which completely fails to reflect the quality of our tactics. The same was true in the second half. I have seen many winning teams that created fewer chances than us in the second half. But where is the problem? Goals. The real problem, the core issue, is that the players must focus on what they showed in the first 30 minutes and on the improvements we can and must make.

Don't pay attention to the media, social networks, or what journalists write, because if we had won today, the situation would be completely different. Everyone would be smiling and praising the beautiful first half and the hard work in the second half. But the outcome of victory or defeat often sways public opinion. My opinion will not be swayed, because I am a coach, not a journalist or an ordinary fan.

After the final whistle, we saw you walk over to Richarlison, and it seemed like you were giving him individual instructions. What did you say to him?

Yes, I instructed him directly on the field. Did you notice what I pointed out?

His body orientation. He is a forward, and a forward must never have his back to the goal during a match. With Maddison, Kudus, and Savio supporting him, he must play like a center forward—directly facing the goal. When Robertson crosses, he must be at the front post, because he started his career as a forward. Although he now plays as a winger, he began as a forward. But I really like Richarlison as a player and I admire him as a person. There is absolutely no contradiction there.

Roberto, you mentioned confidence, and the players' confidence has become a problem. To what extent does the long inability to score start to become a psychological burden for them?

There's a word in Italian, which he also knows: "sblocchiamo"—which means to unblock or break through. I think the team is very strong. We can score goals, and we can win games. We must respect the players' career records. Setting aside Solanke or Marmoush, many other players haven't scored many goals in their past careers. We must help everyone regain their goal-scoring touch.

I think we can score goals through the overall quality of our passing and control, and through our full-backs' overlaps, because our full-backs are very strong. Robertson played well today. We have faith in the power of crosses, and that's exactly how we prepared for this match.

Excuse me, when you mentioned the Italian word "sblocchiamo," did you mean a psychological block?

Yes, a psychological block. Four consecutive games without a win and without scoring are tough for the players, because they are flesh and blood and all very good lads. I ask them to follow my pace. If I could remain optimistic last season, I don't understand why I can't remain positive this season.

Hi, Roberto...

For example, in Italy, I might be hailed as the best coach right now, right? Two games, two clean sheets. Isn't it? What would La Gazzetta dello Sport write? Two clean sheets. What are you going to write tomorrow—a clean sheet or a lack of goals? Tell me what you actually want to write. Do you have an Italian passport?

Yes, you are right.

My understanding is correct, right? Yes. Thank you.

You said the preparations started late, but now it's arguably very late. Five games have been played, and some might feel that sounds like making excuses. Many clubs face the same situation with pre-season preparations, the World Cup, and integrating new players.

No. First, it's four league games, not five. If you include the Aston Villa match, then we've played five.

Including the League Cup, it's five games.

Yes, but that was the 5-1 win against Charlton, where we scored five goals. So we're discussing the Premier League—four games played. I think fans and the public clearly know whether I am making excuses. When I took over last season, the situation was already very difficult (gestures).

I will emphasize again: I have never been blindly optimistic, but pragmatic. I have already explained that I deeply apologize for this result, but a team's tactical improvement and squad development cannot happen overnight. Today we showed cohesion. We didn't score goals and didn't win, but today and against Nottingham Forest, I think we played good team football.

I cannot find any fault with the players' professionalism and fighting spirit on the field—absolutely none. I tell them to stay calm and not lose confidence just because they haven't scored or won yet. Stay calm, continue to improve, train harder, and identify individually where they need to improve. I spoke to Richarlison immediately after the final whistle to clearly explain his positional responsibilities today.

Roberto, how far do you think Tottenham Hotspur is from reaching peak physical condition?

I don't know. We are facing Liverpool away on Tuesday, and we will rotate other players, but that will be a crucial match for us. We can improve our condition through real matches or by training harder during the week. I can't say for sure, but I think Rodrigo Bentancur returned very late after the World Cup, and he is indispensable for us. I didn't want to substitute him today, but I felt his physical condition had bottomed out at that stage. Sandro Tonali's performance improved significantly in the second half. Robertson and Heck have been with the team throughout pre-season training from the start. Van de Ven got injured during the training camp in Australia, as did Solanke and Maddison. Savio and Marmoush only joined ten days ago. Matheus Fernandes was injured in Australia and was out for 15 days, so it's not easy to recover quickly.

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