Tottenham have spent more than £300 million this summer trying to ensure they never experience another season like the last two.
Two games into the new Premier League campaign, they are bottom of the table.
The 3-0 defeat at Brentford last weekend could be explained away as an opening-day setback. Saturday's 2-0 home defeat to Newcastle was harder to defend. Spurs had most of their key new arrivals available, yet looked like a team still trying to work out how to play together.
For Roberto De Zerbi, the biggest problem is not quality. It is mentality.
“You are right, yes. It's the biggest problem, it's the biggest challenge, the biggest target is to find the right mentality,” the Tottenham head coach said after the Newcastle defeat.
“Unfortunately you can't buy the mentality in the transfer market.”
Unfortunately you can't buy the mentality in the transfer market.
That is the central tension of Tottenham's rebuild.
They have invested heavily in personnel. Mateus Fernandes arrived from West Ham for £85 million, Sandro Tonali from Newcastle for £100m, Jan Paul van Hecke from Brighton for £52m and Savio from Manchester City for £75m.
Omar Marmoush also made his debut against Newcastle after joining on loan from City, with a permanent £60m transfer due next summer. Marcos Senesi, Andy Robertson and Martin Dubravka have arrived on free transfers.
The spending has been significant. The transformation on the pitch has not been immediate.
De Zerbi's comments are significant because he does not appear to believe another transfer will solve Tottenham's immediate problem.
“Football is like magic,” he said. “You can change many players in one window of the transfer market, and you can find the balance immediately, or you need more time.”
He wants that balance quickly, but knows it cannot be manufactured.
Tottenham finished 17th in each of the last two Premier League seasons and only avoided relegation on the final day of the previous campaign. They have won just three of their past 23 home league matches.
Tottenham finished 17th in each of the last two Premier League seasons and only avoided relegation on the final day of the previous campaign. They have won just three of their past 23 home league matches.
The expectation was that this summer would mark a decisive break from that cycle.
Instead, Spurs have started with two defeats, no goals and the worst possible league position.
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Former Tottenham goalkeeper Joe Hart offered a telling comparison after the Newcastle defeat.
“When you see a Newcastle side who have been through massive change over the summer, it's hard as in two games you can clearly see what Matthias Jaissle is trying to do,” Hart said.
“The concern for Tottenham is they can't say the same.”
That is perhaps the biggest warning sign.
Newcastle have also undergone significant change, yet their players already appear to understand their roles. Tottenham, by contrast, look as though they are still negotiating theirs.
Former England goalkeeper Rob Green also pointed to a lack of “invention, creation, goals” and said Spurs would need characters to turn the situation around.
That is where De Zerbi's mentality comment becomes more than a soundbite.
De Zerbi has said he still wants “one player more in one specific position” before Tuesday's transfer deadline, while several players, including Kevin Danso, Pape Matar Sarr and Richarlison, have been linked with departures.
De Zerbi has said he still wants “one player more in one specific position” before Tuesday's transfer deadline, while several players, including Kevin Danso, Pape Matar Sarr and Richarlison, have been linked with departures.
But the manager is clear that the rebuild cannot be completed by transfers alone.
“We have to improve and to change two seasons like the last two is impossible in 10 days and with people in the transfer market,” he said.
That may be Tottenham's most important reality check.
