De Zerbi confronts Tel on pitch as Tottenham stretch scoreless run past 400 minutes

Roberto De Zerbi publicly confronted Mathys Tel at full time after Tottenham were held to a goalless draw by Everton at home on Saturday, extending the club’s Premier League scoring drought beyond 400 minutes and leaving them 17th in the table.

Tel had been introduced as a substitute in the 63rd minute for Dominic Solanke but was unable to break the deadlock. Cameras caught De Zerbi gesticulating animatedly at the French forward before abruptly walking away, a moment that quickly drew strong reactions from supporters.

The Spurs manager moved to clarify the exchange in his post-match press conference. “I said to stay calm, maybe to not lose the confidence because we are not scoring, we are not winning,” De Zerbi explained. “I spoke with Mathys Tel just at the end of the game to explain what was his position today.”

Spurs mustered only two shots on target against Everton, prompting audible boos at the final whistle. De Zerbi acknowledged his side’s attacking deficiencies while insisting the underlying performance had merit. “We went inside the Everton area 74 times but didn’t create a good enough chance,” he said. “We made too many wrong decisions, but I think we played well.”

Former Premier League defender Ashley Young was less measured in his assessment. “As professionals you’re going to look at that — six hours and we’ve not scored a goal? It’s a disgrace,” he said. “It’s not good enough at all and there needs to be a big conversation amongst the players. We’ve brought in players and we’re just not scoring goals, we’re not creating chances and we’re not looking like a team that’s going to score.”

The result leaves Tottenham in the same 17th-place position they finished in during each of the last two Premier League campaigns. De Zerbi’s heavy summer spending has yet to produce any visible improvement in attack, and the manner of the Tel confrontation has added a new layer of scrutiny to his man-management. Fans on social media were divided, with some directing their frustration at the manager rather than the player. “You can’t be mad at him — stop playing him,” one supporter wrote, while another warned: “This clown is about to lose the players.”

De Zerbi attributed part of the team’s drop-off to fitness levels. “We played well for the first 30 minutes but then maybe lost energy because our physical condition isn’t the best and we are working on that,” he said.