The blueprint necessary to relaunch HMS Tottenham

Spurs could have a chance to start fresh under Roberto De Zerbi – if they make the right choices

- writes Richard Jolly

Thomas Frank had called the task at Tottenham akin to turning around a supertanker.

Instead, Spurs almost sank. Roberto De Zerbi just about kept them afloat in the Premier League. The non-executive chairman Peter Charrington was nonetheless compelled to write an open letter to supporters saying their last two league finishes were “not acceptable”. He didn’t mean the fourth place they occupied at the end of the Champions League’s league phase.

Seventeenth again, ole, ole? Spurs could celebrate survival on Sunday whereas, with the bottom three distanced last season, their finishing position felt academic. That could have been called a one-off — and did seem to be when Frank’s team were among the early-season pacesetters - whereas now the first target could be summed up in two words: never again.

De Zerbi’s job feels physical and psychological; his tactics, both on and off the field, and transfers can influence it. Over the last two seasons, Spurs have lost 47 games, 39 of them in the Premier League. Ange Postecoglou needs to shoulder some of the blame: losing became a habit on his watch. They need to shed the culture of defeats; in particular, after just three victories in their last 22 home league games, they need to rediscover the habit of winning at their deluxe stadium.

They could do with keeping their players fit, too. One table Spurs did top was the number of days footballers lost to injury. That cannot all be chalked up to misfortune and was a reason why, despite having one of the largest squads in the division, they seemed to have one of the smallest. They were often short of options in key positions.