Maddison excited by De Zerbi era as Spurs reshape for new season

LONDON: James Maddison has said Roberto De Zerbi's approach is the kind of football he wants to play as Tottenham prepare for a new Premier League campaign under their latest manager.

Speaking in Sydney, the England midfielder said he was relishing the changes under De Zerbi, who replaced Igor Tudor in March after Spurs went without a league win in 2026. Maddison said, "The manager is very clear, the goal is to be better, to play better football, to be passionate, to be proud to play for this club."

Maddison, who missed most of last season because of a serious knee injury, said he was still adapting to the Italian coach's methods but believed the style suited him. He said, "I'm still learning the way he plays. But as a player, he's a coach you want to play for because he loves everything with the ball. He's very attacking, and I'm really excited."

De Zerbi kept Tottenham in the Premier League by guiding them to 17th place, with survival sealed by a tense 1-0 victory over Everton on the final day. Since then, the club have moved quickly in the transfer market as part of a wider rebuild.

Busy summer on and off the pitch

Tottenham have already brought in Mateus Fernandes from West Ham and Sandro Tonali from Newcastle, while De Zerbi has also signed Jan Paul van Hecke from his former club Brighton. Andy Robertson, Marcos Senesi and Martin Dubravka have joined on free transfers.

Spurs opened their pre-season tour with a 2-0 win over A-League champions Auckland FC in New Zealand on Sunday, with Dane Scarlett and Richarlison on the scoresheet. They play Sydney FC on Wednesday before facing Chelsea in Sydney three days later.

Maddison said the work in pre-season was geared towards Tottenham's opening league fixture against Brentford on August 22. He said, "First game of the season, Brentford. It's a big season for us under a new manager. We want to have a successful season."

He added, "We need to be better than the last couple of seasons. So it's kind of all just preparation leading to that first game. We're just stepping up what we've been working on and creating the team, how we want to play and the style we want to play."