De Zerbi criticises Spurs after 3-2 home defeat by Villa in Premier League on Sept 19, 2026

Tottenham lost 3-2 at home to Aston Villa in a Premier League match on 19 September 2026, a game settled by two late goals, and manager Roberto De Zerbi publicly rebuked his players after the defeat.

De Zerbi headed straight down the tunnel at full time and was met with boos as Tottenham went into the three-week international break without a Premier League victory and with just two points. He singled out the squad’s mentality and physical condition for criticism and said the substitute Mohammed Kudus had disrupted the team’s balance.

Villa’s Ollie Watkins’ strike sequence included a goal from Jackson in the 67th minute after he latched on to a long kick by the impressive Zion Suzuki. De Zerbi said his players had been prepared to handle the Villa goalkeeper’s clearances but failed to stay alert.

“I am very disappointed, sad and frustrated for the performance,” De Zerbi said. “We can’t lose the game in this way, we can’t concede the second goal, we can’t lose balance just because we are losing. I spoke with our four attackers in minute 51, I asked them to use their head, all second half I was telling people to be calm. But the second goal was incredible.”

“We knew this season Aston Villa are playing 86% more long balls than last season and we spoke in many meetings about it,” De Zerbi added, and he referenced a similar collapse earlier in the campaign: “Now we have to explain another game like [the home defeat against] Newcastle where we played the first half well, got to 60 minutes OK, and then we lose.”

Aston Villa manager Unai Emery described the victory as a product of belief and collective work: “The players did well because they believed,” he said. “We needed to build a team that could play in this way, could defend with resilience and playing with passion when our opponents were attacking. We needed defenders, we needed the keeper, we needed everyone committed in that direction. We needed to feel strong first, then we could try to play with our structure and our ability. This is the competitive way.”

With players now due to join their national sides for the international break, De Zerbi said he had not given them any parting message. “I didn’t speak with the players because I didn’t want to say anything. The players who go with the national team have to play and work.”