Roberto De Zerbi said keeping Tottenham in the Premier League was the biggest achievement of a career that already included success in Europe.
Tottenham stayed in the division on the final day, and the players and staff reacted with clear relief at avoiding relegation after a difficult 2025-26 campaign.
The situation before kick-off was simple but tense for Tottenham, who had to at least match West Ham’s result to remain in the top flight. A 1-0 victory over Everton, secured by Joao Palhinha’s decisive goal, left Tottenham two points above West Ham, who still went down despite a 3-0 win over Leeds United.
The win against Everton also ended a long wait for home joy in the league. Tottenham earned a first Premier League home victory since December, when Brentford were beaten 2-0, and it was only their third league win anywhere during the 2025-26 season, underlining how hard the campaign had been.
That total of three home league wins matched an unwanted Premier League record. It was the joint-fewest home victories by any team that avoided relegation, equalling Hull City’s figure of three in 2008-09. Defender Micky van de Ven described it as embarrassing that survival was settled so late, but De Zerbi focused on the achievement.
De Zerbi reflected on earlier work at other clubs when comparing this escape to previous seasons. “I think this is the biggest achievement in my time, De Zerbi said. The Europa League at Brighton was great. The second place in Marseille, with a lot of problems, was a big achievement. But I think [keeping Spurs up] was maybe one of the best days in football so far.”
De Zerbi then delivered a strong message about learning from a season spent near the bottom. “For sure, we have to learn from our mistakes. We are happy because we stay up, and we forget the past. Actually, no! Stupid people forget the past. The smart people, the people with value, can’t forget and keep in their mind the past. We have to improve from our mistakes. And we are looking forward to start to rebuild a team. We have no time to go on holiday. Will we be stronger for this? If we remember this day, for sure. Next season, we have to keep in our mind [what has happened], to give our best in every training session. If we remember this, it will be easier. We are Tottenham, and we can’t suffer like this until the last second of the last game to stay up. My target now is finished, to stay up. My [next] target is to start pre-season with the team in my dream, in my head.”
The league position underlined why De Zerbi spoke so firmly about standards and rebuilding. Tottenham finished 17th for the second straight season, and it was the first time the club had ended that low in consecutive top-flight campaigns since a sequence between 1912-13 and 1914-15, when Tottenham ended 17th, 17th and then 20th.
Supporters saw survival as relief rather than success, but De Zerbi’s comments showed clear intent for change. The head coach stressed that the squad must remember this battle, use it as a warning, and work through pre-season to build the team imagined, while aiming to avoid another relegation struggle in future campaigns.