Roberto De Zerbi’s arrival at Tottenham Hotspur last month has transformed the outlook for Joao Palhinha, whose future at the club had looked uncertain beforehand. Under Igor Tudor, Palhinha had managed just 22 minutes of game time in the final two matches and was left out entirely during a 3-0 defeat to Nottingham Forest. Both Tudor and Thomas Frank had struggled to integrate him into Spurs’ midfield, given that his game isn’t built around progressive passing or chance creation.
De Zerbi appears to have found the right context for Palhinha to thrive. In the 2-1 win over Aston Villa, he was composed and effective — passing at a 90% success rate and coming out on top in four of six physical contests. The Italian manager afterwards made no secret of wanting to keep the Bayern Munich loanee permanently, stating he was “100 per cent” committed to retaining him and praising both his quality as a player and his character. De Zerbi described him as one of the most reliable people and players at the club, signalling a strong desire to make the arrangement permanent.
Conor Gallagher has emerged as arguably an even more central figure under the new manager, drawing comparisons to Spurs legend Luka Modric. The £34m January signing from Atlético Madrid had struggled under Tudor, often miscast in a role that demanded too much defensive ground-covering. De Zerbi has given him a clearer, more tailored brief as the most advanced member of a midfield three, and the results have been immediate. He opened the scoring against Villa with a long-range goal, and across the two most recent fixtures he surrendered possession only 17 times over 179 minutes while winning four tackles. He has started all four matches under De Zerbi — one more than Palhinha — and his combination of passing range, goal threat, and pressing energy echoes the qualities Modric brought to the club across 160 appearances, during which the Croatian contributed 17 goals and 24 assists. Gallagher now looks set to be one of Spurs’ most important players going forward.
