Tottenham earned their first league point of the season as they secured a scrappy 0-0 draw away to Nottingham Forest. In a game that lacked quality and clear-cut chances, Spurs held on to earn a rare clean sheet and an invaluable point. Forest, meanwhile, will feel aggrieved not to have stolen the win after Neco Williams was adjudged to have handled the ball when bundling home on the goal line in the second half.
Spurs stop rot
It may not have been the result the north Londoners came for, but they at least put a stop to their losing run and ensured Forest were unable to make it four wins on the bounce against them. This result and performance could in time prove a useful building block for De Zerbi as his side showed guts and concentration to hold onto what they had.
Spurs have dictated games with more authority than this and still ended up on the losing side, so to hurdle that particular mental barrier and earn their first clean sheet of the season is important. De Zerbi’s side were imperfect - scrappy in possession and at times chaotic in defence - but they did enough to get their first point on the board, and that has to act as encouragement.
They fought admirably in the middle of the park and would have had something to show for their endeavour if they displayed more poise in the final third. This performance may not live long in the memory, but it showed a team fighting in the same direction and committed to turning things around after a difficult start to the season.
Wait goes on for first goal
De Zerbi and Oliver Glasner were engaged in a war of words in the build-up to this afternoon’s clash, in essence suggesting they could predict exactly how the other was going to set up their team. In fairness to the pair, their pre-match jibes rang true as Forest and Spurs played out an evenly contested but utterly uninspiring match at the City Ground.
There was just one shot on target in the opening 45 minutes, with both teams cancelling each other out as the ball got lost in a scrappy midfield contest, and there was no improvement in quality after the break. Forest arguably edged the second-half and were unlucky to see Williams’ goal ruled out for handball.
For Spurs, though, this was an important point, but a performance devoid of any inspiration as they failed to register a single shot on target. They remain scoreless after three league games, and while they made adjustments in attack, with Savio and Omar Marmoush starting together for the first time, the same issues persist. Ponderous possession and an inability to force high turnovers into shots on goal mean Spurs lack any tangible threat going forward.
New signing frustrates
After a mesmerising performance off the bench against Charlton, expectations were high that Savio could be the man to finally inject some rhythm and incisiveness into Spurs’ attack. The anticipation for the Brazilian’s full debut had only grown after missing out through injury against Newcastle last weekend, but supporters were left frustrated on an afternoon when the visitors toiled in front of goal.
The 22-year-old saw plenty of the ball and offered flickers of promise, with short, sharp one-touch play, but ultimately there was too much pre-amble and not enough penetration from the young winger. De Zerbi knows he has a task on his hands to develop Savio’s promise into productivity, and his performance this afternoon suggests there is work to do if the former Manchester City man is to fulfil his potential.
These are early days, and Savio, like the rest of his team-mates, is trying to work out his place in De Zerbi’s system. In weeks to come, though, De Zerbi will need to see more return on the club’s £75million investment.
