Roberto De Zerbi insists that keeping Tottenham in the Premier League this season is his greatest managerial achievement to date.
Spurs secured top-flight survival on the final day of the 2025/26 campaign after a 1-0 win at home to Everton.
Joao Palhinha’s 43rd-minute goal was enough to earn Tottenham’s first home league win since December and consign rivals West Ham to relegation on an emotionally charged afternoon in north and east London.
West Ham beat Leeds 3-0 at the London Stadium, but it was not enough to prevent a 14-season stay in the Premier League from coming to an end as they slipped into the Championship with the highest points total (39) of any relegated team in the last 15 years.
De Zerbi has been all consumed by Spurs’ plight and was visibly emotional when the full-time whistle blew, having been parachuted in with just seven games to go on a five-year contract with the team sitting a point above the bottom three following the disastrous 44-day reign of interim boss Igor Tudor.
For him, keeping Spurs in the Premier League in those circumstances ranks higher than securing Europa League football for Brighton or helping a dysfunctional Marseille side to a second-place finish in Ligue 1 last season.
“I think this is the biggest achievement in my time [in management],” an upbeat De Zerbi said after beating Everton. “Europa League in Brighton was great. The second place in Marseille, with a lot of problems, was a big achievement.
“But I think today was maybe one of the best days in football so far.”
After successfully avoiding a first relegation from the top-flight since 1977, attention now turns to next season as De Zerbi looks to get Spurs challenging towards the top end of the table after successive 17th-place finishes.
