Tottenham Signs Andy Robertson as De Zerbi's First Key Player

Tottenham have finally landed Andy Robertson, and with him a statement of intent after a season that nearly ended in disaster.

Roberto De Zerbi, still scarred by Spurs’ brush with relegation, has moved quickly and decisively. He said on the final day, after survival was secured with a tense home win over Everton, that he had “10, 11, 12 players good enough to stay” and that “we have now to change too many players.” Robertson is the first brick in that rebuild, a player signed as much for his voice as his left foot.

Robertson arrives as De Zerbi’s standard-bearer

Spurs chased Robertson in January and came up short. They have him now, on a free, after his contract at Liverpool expired following nine hugely successful seasons at Anfield. No fee, no haggling over a final year. Just a clean break and a new start in north London.

At 32, the Scotland captain is preparing for the World Cup with his country, but his club future is settled. De Zerbi has been open about what he wanted: leadership, personality, and players who can handle pressure when the stadium tightens and the table starts to tilt. Robertson fits that brief.

“Andy is someone I’ve admired for a number of years and he will bring outstanding technical qualities, experience, leadership and mentality to our team,” De Zerbi said. “He is a proven winner at the highest level over a long period and is someone who can be a big player for us, both on and off the pitch.”

This is not just a left-back signing. It is an attempt to plug the leadership vacuum that, in De Zerbi’s eyes, helped drag Spurs into trouble last season.

Defensive pillars under threat

The shake-up will not stop with Robertson. De Zerbi has praised Cristian Romero, the club captain, even as the Argentinian watched the closing weeks of the campaign from the sidelines with a knee injury. Yet inside the dressing room, there is an expectation that he will not be there when the transfer window closes. None of the players, it is understood, believe Romero will stay.

If Romero goes, he may not be the only defensive pillar to move. Micky van de Ven, his partner at the heart of the back line, has attracted serious interest. Liverpool are among the suitors, and De Zerbi is already plotting replacements.

He has two names in mind: Marcos Senesi of Bournemouth and Jan Paul van Hecke of Brighton. Senesi is out of contract and Spurs already have a deal lined up, while Van Hecke is a familiar face to De Zerbi from their time together at Brighton. It is a clear strategy: trusted lieutenants, known quantities, players he believes can carry out his football without a long bedding-in period.

Attacking targets and a key loanee

The rebuild stretches further forward. Spurs are chasing Savinho from Manchester City, a move that would add pace and unpredictability in the final third, and they also hold an interest in Fulham’s Harry Wilson, a left-footed option who can operate wide or drift inside.

In midfield, João Palhinha has made his intentions clear. On loan from Bayern Munich, he wants to stay at Spurs. For a team that flirted with the drop, keeping a player of his stature and influence would be another anchor point in De Zerbi’s new structure.

The pattern is obvious: experience, resilience, players with a track record of competing at the top level or under the fiercest pressure. Last season’s escape has hardened the manager’s view of what this squad needs.

Boardroom turbulence: a new power struggle looming?

While De Zerbi reshapes the squad, the club’s hierarchy faces its own upheaval.

An American investment group, Eight Sports Capital, led by tech entrepreneur and former DJ Brooklyn Earick, has claimed it has agreed a deal to buy Daniel Levy’s 24.99% stake in Spurs’ parent company, Enic Sports and Development Holdings Limited. Levy, forced off the board last September, still owns 29.88% of Enic despite his diminished formal role.

He has been in talks with multiple parties about selling his shares, and on Friday Eight Sports Capital went public, announcing that they have signed an agreement to purchase his stake. The group is owned by Triller, a US entertainment company that specialises in combat sports, including bare-knuckle fighting, and is fronted by Earick, whose previous hostile takeover attempt was emphatically rejected by Tottenham’s current owners.

“We are delighted to have signed this agreement to acquire a significant stake in Enic,” a spokesperson for Eight Sports Capital said. “We look forward to working with the club’s shareholders, management, staff, players and fans to support Tottenham Hotspur’s continued growth and success.”

The deal, though, is shrouded in uncertainty. Sources close to Levy declined to confirm that a sale had been agreed. Representatives of the Lewis family, who own Tottenham through Enic, said they were unaware of any completed transaction. The club itself also refused to comment.

If the agreement holds and passes the necessary checks, the implications could be profound. A significant new shareholder with a history of a rejected hostile move would shift the balance of power and potentially ignite a struggle for ultimate control.

On the pitch, De Zerbi is ripping up his squad and starting again with Andy Robertson as his first cornerstone. Off it, Spurs may be heading into a very different kind of battle.