Paul Merson Warns Over De Zerbi's Comments at Tottenham

Paul Merson has sounded the alarm over Roberto De Zerbi’s early-season rhetoric at Tottenham – and he isn’t talking about tactics.

The former Arsenal midfielder believes De Zerbi’s decision to publicly criticise both his forwards and his medical staff after Spurs’ 0-0 draw with Nottingham Forest is a red flag, the kind of thing that can quietly rot a dressing room if it becomes a habit.

‘You keep that in the dressing room’

Tottenham’s performance at the City Ground hardly inspired. They failed to register a shot on target and are still waiting for their first Premier League goal of the season. Forest, Merson felt, should have punished them.

“I thought Spurs were fortunate against Nottingham Forest – if Neco Williams is a little bit braver, then Forest win,” he said. “But it’s a start for them.”

What really grabbed his attention came after the final whistle. De Zerbi went straight for his attacking players, insisting they must make “better decisions” in the final third, then turned his fire on the club’s medical department for insisting Savio and Destiny Udogie could only play an hour.

For Merson, that crossed a line.

“Roberto De Zerbi had a go at his forwards after the game. He also had a go at his medical staff for dictating his substitutions,” he wrote. “You say that in the dressing room; don’t come out and say it. You need to keep that in-house.

“That would worry me as a Spurs fan. De Zerbi does fall out with people.”

The Italian had explained his frustration in detail. He praised much of Spurs’ build-up play but lamented the choices in the final third, pointing to specific moments: Omar Marmoush shooting instead of slipping in Andy Robertson on the overlap, crosses from Mathys Tel and Savio sailing beyond the back post, Mateus Fernandes not being found when he was free to burst through and score.

“I think we played well but in the last third we have to improve. We have to take the better decisions. We have to keep more calm when we are very close to doing something important in the last third,” De Zerbi said.

Merson, though, didn’t see a barrage of missed sitters.

“I don’t understand having a go at the forwards,” he argued. “They didn’t have 20 chances. It’s not as if the Nottingham Forest goalkeeper was man of the match. I didn’t see that at all.”

Medical row echoes Chelsea warning

If the criticism of his attackers raised eyebrows, the comments about the medical team set off sirens.

De Zerbi revealed he was “not happy” that club medics pushed him to withdraw Savio and Udogie after 60 minutes, insisting their condition meant he could not risk them any longer.

“The second half, I’m sorry because the medical staff pushed to change Savinho and Udogie after 60 minutes,” he said. He accepted that Mohammed Kudus and Robertson “played very well” but felt that making both changes at that point “was not so good” and disrupted Spurs’ balance and connection.

He stressed Savio and Udogie are “crucial” players and that he could not gamble with their fitness, even if it hurt Spurs’ rhythm. “I’m not happy when we have the plan, but it’s for my advantage, for my business, the management of the players after injuries,” he added.

To Merson, that sounded uncomfortably familiar.

“He’s having a go at them – and you saw what happened with Enzo Maresca at Chelsea when he started calling out the medical team for dictating his substitutions. He left a few weeks later,” he warned.

At the same time, Merson can see why De Zerbi might feel the need to publicly underline his own authority.

“I don’t know if he’s covering himself there with those comments about the medical staff, because that could be kept quiet,” he wrote. “At the same time, if he’s being told to take a player off, he’s the manager. He’s in charge. If it’s not up to him how long his players get on the pitch, why shouldn’t he cover himself?”

That tension – between protecting players and protecting the manager’s position – is exactly why Merson thinks those conversations should stay behind closed doors.

Mentality the real concern

The goalless draw leaves Spurs searching for their first league goal and already looking up at the clubs they are supposed to be chasing. Merson isn’t panicking about the table yet, but he is wary of the mindset at a club trying to shake off back-to-back 17th-place finishes.

“It’s a long way to go for Spurs. But my problem is the mentality,” he said. “You don’t come 17th two years on the trot and expect to turn it around in a New York minute.”

For him, Tottenham’s focus has to be realistic. Forget the glamour of chasing down the title contenders. Just climb.

“I think people have got to be patient. Spurs shouldn’t worry about being eight points behind Arsenal – all they’ve got to worry about is who’s fifth, and how many points they’re behind fifth.

“They’re not finishing ahead of Man City, Liverpool, Chelsea and Arsenal.”

That’s the backdrop to De Zerbi’s early outburst: a club trying to drag itself away from the bottom half while a demanding, combustible manager pushes hard from day one.

The football will evolve. The question, as Merson sees it, is whether the relationships inside the club survive long enough for that evolution to take hold.