Roberto De Zerbi has told Mateus Fernandes to ignore the noise, after the Tottenham midfielder went from “disaster” to the new Luka Modric inside a fortnight.
The Portuguese midfielder, signed from West Ham in the summer, was excellent in the 2-0 win at Chelsea last weekend, and a lot of fans have since been saying he is the player who reminds them most of Modric’s Spurs days.
De Zerbi was asked about that comparison on Friday, ahead of tonight’s 5.30pm kick-off against Crystal Palace, and he wasn’t having it. Not because he doubts the player, but because he has seen how quickly the mood flips.
What did De Zerbi tell Mateus Fernandes?
RDZ turned the question back on the room first. “You are very funny. You know why? Because the world is going too fast,” he said. “Two weeks ago, Mateus Fernandes, 80 million, was a disaster signing, a disaster player, not good enough.”
Then came the advice he says he gave the player. “I said to Mateus: don’t listen to the media, don’t see the media, don’t follow what the people say, because it’s not true,” De Zerbi explained. “One game, you play well, you are top, like Luka Modric, and the day after you are a stupid player, you can’t play.”
Fernandes has his own explanation for the turnaround, having already said the squad’s training camp in Marbella was the change point. His manager’s version is simpler: nothing about the player changed at all.
Can he become one of Europe’s best?
“Mateus Fernandes was a very good player before Chelsea and is the same player after Chelsea,” De Zerbi said. “He has to think to improve, because he has the potential. He can become one of the best midfielders in Europe in the near future.”
He called the deal a great signing because Fernandes is a potential top player for the club first and for him second, then widened the point to others in the squad: Savio, Xavi Simons, Lucas Bergvall and Archie Gray.
How does the Tottenham midfield fit together?
That’s the “so what” for N17. De Zerbi named Sandro Tonali, Bergvall, Fernandes and Rodrigo Bentancur as a group built on contrast, pointing out that Bergvall and Tonali both attack space without being the same player. “To build a team, you have to bring different characteristics. It is better for us,” he said.
He can’t pick all of them today. Bentancur serves the last game of his three-match ban and Bergvall is out with a knee problem, which is why the fitness news on James Maddison matters so much for this one.
Savio, Kudus and a problem De Zerbi wants
Savio, out with a muscle injury, looks set to wait until after the international break. Asked if that was the plan, De Zerbi said: “I think so.” And when he was asked how his return will work alongside Mohammed Kudus, he kept it short: “It’s my problem, not your problem. Unfortunately, it’s my problem.”
Kudus drew plenty of praise too. De Zerbi agreed with Andy Robertson that he was crucial at Chelsea, and said he is capable of scoring more, recalling that he played as a nine and a ten at Ajax. It’s a useful thought given how much Spurs can hurt Palace out wide, with Kudus and Mathys Tel bringing what De Zerbi calls different characteristics.
There was warm praise as well for Dejan Kulusevski, who has revealed he now does an hour of stretching every day to manage his knee. “Kulusevski is stronger than injuries,” De Zerbi said, calling him a big example for the younger players.
Is Mateus Fernandes the new Modric? Not yet, and that’s the point
De Zerbi’s reaction tells you more than the comparison does. He was told a win tonight would be Spurs’ first run of three straight Premier League victories in 616 days, and his answer was “Oh, I didn’t know” followed by “nothing changed for us.” Asked whether the fire was out, he said no, and spoke about a long project and staying calm.
I think he’s right to play it down. One big night at Stamford Bridge doesn’t make anyone Modric, just as a slow start didn’t make him a disaster. The real test for Fernandes is doing it again and again, starting tonight if he gets the nod. If De Zerbi’s “we are not changing mood” message has landed, that’s the bit worth watching against Palace.
