Roberto De Zerbi wanted time more than theatre this summer. The 2026 World Cup may now have handed Tottenham something close to a private coaching win.
Football.London reported that Spurs expect several World Cup players to return earlier than first feared after Scotland, Uruguay and the Netherlands exited the tournament. That matters because Andy Robertson, Rodrigo Bentancur, Micky van de Ven and Jan Paul van Hecke should now have a stronger chance of joining the July tour block before Tottenham face Auckland FC, Sydney FC and Chelsea.
For a manager whose full tactical model has not yet been properly installed in N17, this is not a soft scheduling detail. It is a genuine squad-building advantage.
Why The Early Return Changes The Training Picture
Tottenham confirmed they started the tournament with 12 players involved and 10 advancing to the knockout stage, a heavy international footprint for a squad already being rebuilt at speed. The earlier exits trim that disruption before it becomes a full pre-season fracture.
Robertson is especially important. He has already been covered individually as a left-side solution for De Zerbi, but the wider value now sits in repetition. De Zerbi’s build-up structure asks full-backs to understand distances, body shape and risk triggers before the ball arrives. A new signing learning that in Australia is far better than learning it during the week of Brentford away.
Van Hecke’s return carries the same logic. Sky Sports framed him as one of the clearest examples of De Zerbi’s pull in the market, with the defender arriving from Brighton after previously working under the Italian. That relationship helps, but it does not replace live work with Van de Ven, Robertson and the midfield screen in front of him.
- Friday, July 10: staged medical and physical testing expected to begin at Hotspur Way.
- Monday, July 13: full pitch work scheduled to follow.
- Wednesday, July 23: Spurs are expected to depart for the New Zealand and Australia tour.
The De Zerbi Method Needs Bodies, Not Just Ideas
The risk with Tottenham’s summer has always been that the rebuild becomes too theoretical. Supporters can debate line-ups, transfers and positional profiles endlessly, but De Zerbi’s football is installed through habits: angles under pressure, third-man timing, rest-defence positions and when a centre-back steps into midfield.
That is why the Netherlands’ exit is so useful for Spurs. Van de Ven and Van Hecke are not fringe pieces in this project. They are two defenders who can decide whether De Zerbi can hold a high line, squeeze the pitch and still progress the ball cleanly against Premier League pressure.
The same applies to Bentancur, even with his long-term future previously clouded. If he is part of the training group, he gives De Zerbi another senior midfielder through which to test build-up patterns. If he is moved on, his early return still gives the club a cleaner assessment window before decisions harden.
Brentford Away Is Already The Deadline
The first league game at Brentford on August 22 gives Spurs enough time to look organised, but not enough time to waste July. That is why this World Cup development feels more valuable than a routine fitness update.
De Zerbi has a squad with new defensive pieces, returning internationals and a transfer market still moving around the midfield. The earlier he can put Robertson, Van de Ven, Van Hecke and Bentancur into the same tactical environment, the less Tottenham have to rely on August improvisation.
This does not solve every problem. Djed Spence, Pape Matar Sarr, Pedro Porro, Kevin Danso, Luka Vuskovic, Cristian Romero and Marcos Senesi still have knockout-stage variables attached. Yet the first wave coming back gives De Zerbi a platform. For a manager trying to turn survival into structure, that window may prove quietly decisive.
