Fabian Hurzeler called on Brighton and Hove Albion to play with intensity and not give Tottenham any hope as Roberto De Zerbi aims to boost Spurs’ survival hopes with a win over his former club.
De Zerbi takes charge of his first home game as Spurs boss with his side in a dire position following positive results for Tottenham’s rivals in the battle against the drop.
Third-bottom Tottenham are two points adrift of West Ham, who face Crystal Palace on Monday, and three behind Nottingham Forest. Leeds United have a six-point lead over Spurs following their surprise win at Manchester United.
With Forest and Leeds having favourable fixtures against Burnley and Wolves respectively, another defeat for Tottenham could leave them with a mountain to climb to avoid a first relegation from the top flight since 1977.
Tottenham have not won in the Premier League in 2026, and an opening home game against the last team he managed in England represents a difficult challenge for De Zerbi after suffering a 1-0 defeat at Sunderland in his maiden game at the helm.
Brighton have claimed three successive wins and are just two points adrift of sixth-placed Chelsea in the race for European football.
And while Hurzeler had kind words for De Zerbi, who led Brighton to European qualification in 2022-23 and then to the last 16 of the Europa League the following season, there will no room for sentiment in his side’s approach as they look to continue their fine form.
“I think he deserves the praise because he had a huge impact here on the club and achievements on the players,” Hurzeler said of De Zerbi.
“On the other side, when the whistle blows, it is a game between Brighton and Tottenham and our approach is the same. We are there to achieve something and to win the game and to show the right habits, so that is our focus.”
Asked if he is surprised by Tottenham’s predicament, Hurzeler replied: “I think everyone is a little bit surprised but on the other hand it’s very important to understand how ruthless the Premier League can be, how tight the Premier League is.
“You need to be at your highest level every weekend. We experienced, with a bad run this season, if you’re not doing the right behaviour daily then you have no chance at the weekend.
“Our goal is that we make our supporters loud, proud and therefore we need to have our style of play. We need to go there and play intense football, don’t give them any hope and be very mature in our approach.”
Team news for Tottenham v Brighton
Tottenham captain Cristiano Romero is expected to miss the rest of the season with an MCL injury.
He joins Mohammed Kudus (thigh), Dejan Kulusevski (knee), Wilson Odobert (ACL), Ben Davies (ankle) and Guglielmo Vicario (hernia) on the sideline.
James Maddison (knee) and Rodrigo Bentancur (hamstring) are back in training.
Lewis Dunk is suspended for Brighton, who are also without Adam Webster (knee) and Stefanos Tzimas (knee).
