In Gameweek 2 of the Premier League, Tottenham Hotspur FC lost to Newcastle United FC 0-2 away from home, marking their second consecutive league defeat to start the season. Following the match, Roberto De Zerbi, Tottenham Hotspur's head coach, attended a press conference to answer media questions.

How disappointed are you with Tottenham Hotspur's attacking performance today? They had multiple chances to score but never really came close to finishing.

I'm disappointed with the result, and I must apologize to the fans and the atmosphere here. After two defeats, some people might think history is repeating itself—returning to the same pattern from the past two seasons. I don't think that way, and I'm not in doubt at all. I can't change my opinion because of two defeats. I have great confidence in the strength of my players. Ultimately, when we become a team, when the relationships between players improve, when our playing quality improves, when our defensive performance improves, and when we close the gap between attack, defense, and midfield, when we build a team, results won't change—whether under my leadership or another coach's—because they are all exceptional players.

I feel sorry for the club because, regardless, they are building an excellent team, but right now, for various reasons, we're not fully ready. There are many reasons we're not ready, but today, before we conceded the first goal, I thought we played better than Newcastle United FC. Newcastle United is a good team with a good coach and good players—everything is excellent. But we created more scoring opportunities, had more shots, and had higher possession than Newcastle. In a couple of dangerous situations in the first half, we had slightly too many problems because the gap between attack and defense was too wide, leaving too much space for the opponent. After conceding, I think we lost confidence. Our reaction on the pitch wasn't good enough—not the reaction I wanted to see. I spoke with the players immediately after the match because when you're building something new, it's always difficult. There are always problems, and the key difference is how you plan to solve them. The solution isn't to give up but to fight back, because we still had twenty minutes to score one, two, or even three goals.

Do you still want to sign another player in a specific position before the transfer window closes? An attacking player, perhaps?

No. We're only talking about today's game right now. Today is not the time to discuss this—otherwise it looks like an excuse, and I don't want to make excuses. What I want to say is that I'm more confident in our project now than I was before we faced Brentford. I believe in our players. I think Marmousch made an excellent debut, and it was also Fandé de Fen and Pedro Porro's first match back. They've been away for a while, but after the World Cup and injuries, they're important to this team. Sandro Tonali is another crucial player whose fitness isn't quite complete yet and may still need conditioning work, even though he's been training with us since the start of preseason. I'd say, if last season when we were in the relegation zone—because when I first arrived, we were in it—I still maintained a positive attitude, then what do you think I should think now?

Can we talk about the team selection? Richarlison, Pape Matar Sarr, and Kevin Dantsa didn't play today.

Richarlison—I'm not entirely sure. He's expressed his desire to leave multiple times. Kevin Dantsa came to me two days ago and told me he wants to leave as well. Pape Matar Sarr is in the same situation, but he has a minor injury, though he's almost ready to return to training. Additionally, Savío is another key player who couldn't play today. Yesterday, after the press conference, the medical team reported that Savío was unwell—just a small muscle issue. Hopefully on Monday or Tuesday, he might be able to train with us again, but the medical team doesn't want to risk him, especially considering he hasn't had structured training with Manchester City over the past ten to fifteen days.

What about Sandro Tonali? You've mentioned the team's mental resilience many times last season. It seems last week they lost confidence after conceding, and the same happened today after conceding. Is mental strength your biggest concern right now?

You're absolutely right. Yes, you're completely right about everything.

How do you plan to improve this?

This is the biggest problem, the most difficult challenge, and the main objective—finding the right mentality. Unfortunately, you can't buy mental resilience in the transfer market, and you can't fix it by bringing in many players at once. Football is magical and wonderful, isn't it? You can replace many players in a single transfer window and find balance immediately, but sometimes you need more time. I believe we can achieve this goal, and we will accomplish it. I hope to achieve it as soon as possible because it's crucial for playing well. However, the club's plan and project, and everything we've done to build this new team with new players, is an excellent plan—an excellent project. I'm very confident this project will ultimately succeed. After this defeat, we must accept it, face it strongly, and move forward. I think if we'd scored two goals in the second half today, everyone would be talking about something completely different right now. Unfortunately, we lost this game. There's an Italian saying: "The winner celebrates, the loser explains"—and right now I'm explaining.

But Roberto, what do you want to say to those players who told you they want to leave? Is there a way back for them?

I love these players very much. They're good people, and I have a good relationship with them. However, if they want to leave, they need to present a reasonable exit for the club—which means a financial package—and then they can leave. We'll look for other players.

One final question. You mentioned Sandro Tonali, and today was a particularly difficult match for him. How disappointed are you with him, seeing Newcastle United fans booing him and him being subbed off after the sequence leading to their opening goal?

No, I love Sandro Tonali. Today was a special day. Today my emotional investment in this player runs deeper than usual because this is what we've built together—the club, the staff, John Lang, the owners, and myself. They're like our children, so today is a sad day. We're all very disappointed with this result, but I love my players today more than I would love a victory we get in the next match.

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