To rediscover the team's soul, De Zerbi urged the players to possess strong ambition and motivation.

Tottenham Hotspur, nicknamed the "Lilywhites," will travel to Brentford for their first Premier League match of the new season. De Zerbi stated that the team must learn from last season's lessons and rediscover its "soul," and must face the challenges of the new season with strong ambition and motivation.

In the 2025/26 Premier League season, Tottenham Hotspur were unable to maintain a consistent performance and were in relegation crisis for a longer period of time, but ultimately managed to avoid relegation by finishing 17th.

Tottenham Hotspur manager De Zerbi said at a press conference, "It feels like I've been here for 10 years, but it's only been 3 months, and these have been incredibly intense. We can't forget what happened last season; it was a major lesson for everyone. In any case, we must turn a new page and start a brand new and very important season."

“I think we are building a completely new plan. The biggest challenge now is, without talking about the specific goals and final results for this season. We currently have two very clear goals. The first is to find the soul of the team, and the second is to improve our organization, both with and without the ball.”

De Zerbi pointed out, "Our playing style must be key this season, like our soul, and these are the two qualities I hope to find as soon as possible. If I talk about 'soul' at the beginning of the press conference, then each of us must be here with the right mindset."

“Everyone must be proud to be here, and have strong ambition and great motivation. Otherwise, if you play for me for a season without motivation and ambition, it will be very difficult for everyone.”

When discussing the team's current squad status, De Zerbi said, "Van der Wen is not on the matchday squad, nor is Pedro Polo. However, some players are available, including Maddison, Solanke, Udogi, and Matthäus Fernández."

“Sarr is experiencing some hamstring pain, so he can't participate in the game. Although it's not a serious problem, we won't take any risks, especially at this stage. Kulusevski, Odober, and Javi Simmons are all carrying injuries, while Kudus is close to returning. These players are very important to us; they are all top players, and we look forward to seeing them back on the field.”

In addition, De Zerbi said, "Van der Wen has been training with us and his recovery is going very well. He had some problems during the preseason in Australia, nothing serious, but he wasn't ready to continue training at that time."

"However, we have Senesi and Ben Davies, and we are in a good position to handle this game, and we will strive for a good result."

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