Tottenham in relegation trouble: What was learned from Roberto De Zerbi's first game in charge of Spurs?

Many of Tottenham's biggest issues were self-diagnosed by Roberto De Zerbi during his first game in charge. Spurs had fallen into the bottom three before travelling to Sunderland and their performance in defeat did nothing to strengthen belief they can climb out of it.

Appointing De Zerbi as one of the highest paid head coaches in the division at this juncture of an already calamitous campaign was a high-stakes gamble. Some might argue that keeping Igor Tudor on would have been riskier still.

But whoever the boss - De Zerbi is Spurs' fourth of the last 12 months - the same problems seem to persist.

Tottenham do not have a style to speak of. Perhaps that was part of the enigmatic Italian's appeal. De Zerbi clearly offers philosophy, a distinctive way of playing, and as evidenced by his time at Brighton, a high ceiling of performance level.