Roberto De Zerbi on Lucas Bergvall's Future at Tottenham
Roberto De Zerbi wants Lucas Bergvall to stay. He just won’t promise him the keys to Tottenham’s midfield.
The Italian has been blunt about the situation, according to The Athletic: he sees a “top, top, top player” in the 20-year-old, but refuses to offer what Bergvall craves most — guaranteed minutes in his preferred role.
A talent at a crossroads
Bergvall told Spurs in June that he wanted a new challenge. That admission opened the door to Premier League rivals, with Newcastle United and Nottingham Forest both circling, sensing an opportunity around a restless young midfielder tied down only on paper until June 2031.
On the pitch, his numbers last season were modest but not insignificant: 33 appearances in all competitions, 1,465 minutes, one goal. Enough to hint at something, not enough to secure untouchable status in a squad being aggressively upgraded.
De Zerbi’s admiration is clear. After a recent pre-season outing against Sydney FC, he spoke glowingly of the Swede’s ceiling and made no attempt to hide how highly he rates him. He wants him in the building. He just won’t beg.
“I would like that he stays with us. I think he’s potentially a top, top, top player. But then I don’t want to convince anyone to stay,” he said, drawing a hard line between opportunity and entitlement.
A crowded midfield and a clear demand
The context matters. Tottenham have torn up their own limits this summer, smashing their transfer record twice — £85 million on Matheus Fernandes, £100 million on Sandro Tonali. Those figures do more than grab headlines; they reshape the internal hierarchy.
Every new arrival squeezes the space Bergvall is fighting for. His message to the club has been simple: he wants “space” and he wants to play as a double pivot. De Zerbi’s response has been just as direct.
“It’s very clear, his idea. He wants space. He wants to play as a double pivot as a position. I can’t give, for any player in the world, the place in the first XI guaranteed,” the manager said.
That is the crux. Bergvall wants a defined lane. De Zerbi offers only a pathway, not a promise.
Attitude, not assurances
Interestingly, the midfielder has not recently sat down face to face with De Zerbi to restate his desire to leave, but the conversations have happened. The coach has heard enough to understand the player’s position — and has laid down his own conditions just as plainly.
“To stay with us, we have to have the right spirit to stay. He’s a good guy. We will see in the next weeks,” De Zerbi noted, making it clear that mentality will decide as much as tactical fit.
If Bergvall stays, it will be on the manager’s terms: fight for the shirt, accept the competition, grow inside a squad built to challenge. If he goes, it will be because he chose certainty elsewhere over the gamble of breaking through at a club that has just spent heavily in his area of the pitch.
Decision time upstairs
For now, the ball sits in the boardroom. De Zerbi has made his stance public and private. The next move belongs to Bergvall and the hierarchy.
The midfielder will need to speak directly with chief executive Vinai Venkatesham or sporting director Johan Lange to thrash out his long-term future. Those talks will run parallel to an intense pre-season, where Tottenham’s new-look squad works under a coach who refuses to compromise on standards.
Spurs are moving forward at pace. The question is whether Lucas Bergvall chooses to run with them, or take his chance elsewhere in the Premier League.
