Tottenham's record signing Sandro Tonali endured a nightmare debut as Brentford's Mamadou Sangare ran rings round the former Newcastle midfielder, leaving Spurs breathless on the first weekend of the season.
The £100million summer signing was expected to be the poster boy for a new era under Roberto De Zerbi, but the defeat shattered that perception comprehensively.
De Zerbi's Backing
Despite the difficult start, De Zerbi insists Tonali is worth the fee. "Sandro Tonali's value (£100m) is that value because he is one of the most important midfielders in the Premier League," he said.
"We have the quality enough right now to win the (Newcastle) game and to play much better because it's normal to play better than we did in Brentford."
A disrupted pre-season has left Tonali needing to catch up physically, but at his best, the Italian can be the foundation Spurs need in the middle of the park.
Complete Midfielder
De Zerbi has been impressed with the 26-year-old since he arrived in north London, seeing Tonali both as a No8 and a No6 in his 4-2-3-1 system.
"Sandro sincerely is much better than I thought before I worked with him," De Zerbi continued. "I already said many times, smart guy, smart player, very clean with the ball."
"Maybe can seem one player more of quantity and less quality. It's not true. He's a complete midfielder. He can play as a six, as an eight, he has the right intensity to play in the Premier League, and we are very happy for him."
Transfer Market Value
Tonali was in high demand this summer, with Arsenal and Manchester City said to be interested. De Zerbi says Spurs fought off serious competition for his signature.
"He received two big offers for two big teams in the Premier League. It's not correct to say their clubs but two big clubs fought with us to bring him and he wanted to come here," he said.
In a summer that saw Elliot Anderson join City for £113million and 18-year-old Ayyoub Bouaddi command more than £86m after less than 100 senior appearances, De Zerbi believes Spurs got good value in a "crazy" market.
"The discussion is the transfer market price in Premier League are right or not? I think the answer is in Premier League it's a different transfer market. The value of the players in the Premier League are totally different than in the other markets in Europe," he added.
