Tottenham's Pre-Season Tour: De Zerbi's New Era Begins in Auckland
Tottenham land in Auckland on Sunday carrying more than just jet lag. They arrive with a £200million rebuild, a demanding new head coach in Roberto De Zerbi and a fanbase expecting proof that back‑to‑back 17th-place finishes are a line in the sand, not a new reality.
The curtain goes up at Eden Park against Auckland FC, the start of a pre-season tour that stretches across New Zealand and Australia and will offer the first public glimpse of De Zerbi’s Spurs.
De Zerbi’s first real look in public
A 1-0 win over MK Dons in a behind-closed-doors friendly on Wednesday quietly opened Tottenham’s summer. This trip is different. Travelling supporters finally get to see De Zerbi’s ideas on grass rather than in training clips and transfer headlines.
Spurs have already moved aggressively in the market. Six new signings, more than £200m spent, and a clear signal that the club intends to rip up the drift of recent seasons. Only one of those recruits, Argentina centre-back Marcos Senesi, has not made the 35-man squad heading to the southern hemisphere.
The rest are on the plane. Sandro Tonali, Mateus Fernandes, Andy Robertson, Jan Paul van Hecke and Martin Dubravka all travel and should feature at some stage of the tour. This is not a token pre-season run-out for fringe players; it is an early audition for a rebuilt core.
Big names missing, big chances offered
There are absentees, and significant ones. First-choice goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario stays at home after what the club called a “minor knock”. Pape Matar Sarr and Rodrigo Bentancur are also missing, both granted extended leave following their exertions at the World Cup.
Others who went deep into the tournament, including Pedro Porro, Cristian Romero and Djed Spence, have not travelled either. For Romero and Vicario, the question hangs in the air: have they already played their last games for Spurs? Both have been heavily linked with moves away, and their absence only sharpens the speculation.
Several long-term injury cases remain at Hotspur Way as they continue rehabilitation. Mohammed Kudus, Dejan Kulusevski, Xavi Simons and Wilson Odobert will watch this tour from afar, their recovery timelines more important than pre-season minutes.
The gaps in the squad create opportunity. Youngsters such as Luca Williams-Barnett, who caught the eye against MK Dons, and highly rated forward Mikey Moore are suddenly in the spotlight. For them, Eden Park is not just a friendly; it is a stage.
De Zerbi is expected to lean into that. Spurs are likely to field different starting XIs in each half, giving senior players fitness and youngsters a genuine platform.
Auckland test and a record crowd
Auckland FC are no ceremonial opponents. They finished third in the A-League last season and will relish the chance to measure themselves against Premier League opposition in front of what is expected to be a record crowd at Eden Park.
The stadium will be packed, curious and loud. For many in the stands, this will be their first live look at Tottenham since the club’s sweeping summer overhaul. For De Zerbi, it is another data point: how his new signings blend, how his patterns of play hold under pressure, how quickly this squad can absorb his demands.
The predicted Spurs XI underlines the changing face of the team: Kinsky; Takai, Van de Ven, Van Hecke, Udogie; Fernandes, Tonali; Yang, Moore, Tel; Solanke. Established names mixed with new arrivals and academy promise, all under the glare of a global fanbase wanting signs of life.
Kick-off comes early for those back in London — 4am BST on Sunday July 26, 2026 — but for Spurs, this feels more like a dawn than a slog. Auckland first, then on to Australia for meetings with Sydney FC and a sharper test against Chelsea.
By the time Tottenham leave this tour, the picture around De Zerbi’s “new-look side” will be clearer. The question is whether this is the start of a resurgence, or just another chapter in a long, restless rebuild.
