Can signings alone solve Tottenham's problems?

No. Signings help quality but must include players with leadership and mental toughness; otherwise transfers merely paper over deeper cultural issues.

How long will it take De Zerbi to change Spurs' mentality?

Expect meaningful shifts in around a season if the club backs targeted recruitment and enforces daily standards; quicker fixes are unlikely to stick.

What should Tottenham prioritise this summer?

Priority: two personality-first signings who lead on the pitch, a sports psychologist, and a strict behavioural code applied by coaching staff and board.

De Zerbi's Reckoning: Spurs' Losing Mindset Isn't for Sale

Roberto De Zerbi arrived at Tottenham with tactical credibility and the club's spending power behind him, but early signs show that cash cannot buy the one thing Spurs most lack: a winning mentality. New signings have added quality on paper, yet recurring soft moments and self-inflicted setbacks reveal a deeper cultural problem. The manager faces a dressing room more used to excuses than demands.

Tactically De Zerbi has clear ideas — pressing intensity, vertical play and positional rules — but strategy alone cannot instill courage or killer instinct. Those traits are forged through daily standards, ruthless selection and leaders who will hold teammates to account. Without that spine, tactical instructions become suggestions rather than non-negotiables.

The club's transfer approach has accumulated talent but not the psychological profiles required to change a team's identity: winners who impose themselves in tight games. Spurs need targeted recruitment for character as much as technique, alongside investment in sports psychology and stricter training-ground discipline. Otherwise, expensive signings will continue to paper over symptoms rather than mend the illness.

The Guru's verdict is blunt: Daniel Levy should back De Zerbi but with a smarter plan — personality-first signings, a clear behavioural code, and patience for about a season to see cultural change. If the board chooses quick fixes and more indiscriminate spending, De Zerbi's project will fray and Tottenham will slip back into the same cycles. My recommendation: recruit two genuine leaders, install a rigorous standards regime, and judge the manager on progress after 12 months.