Tottenham's New Era: Van Hecke and Robertson Await Debut
Tottenham’s new era is already in motion, but two of the club’s headline arrivals are still waiting just to step onto the pitch.
Jan Paul van Hecke and Andy Robertson again watched from the sidelines as Spurs eased past A-League champions Auckland FC 2-0 in the early hours of Sunday morning, their wait for a first appearance stretching into a second pre-season outing.
This is not how either man imagined the start of life in north London. Robertson, the former Liverpool left-back and Scotland captain, arrived on a free before his country’s World Cup campaign kicked off, a statement signing and a ready-made leader. Van Hecke’s move from Brighton was confirmed during the tournament, another piece of a defensive rebuild designed to match Tottenham’s lavish work in midfield.
It has been a summer of heavy spending and hard reset. More than £200m has gone into reshaping this squad, with Mateus Fernandes and Sandro Tonali among those drafted in to transform the centre of the pitch. The club has not been shy about its ambition.
Roberto De Zerbi, though, has refused to be rushed.
The Italian has treated this long-haul tour with caution, keeping his senior players on a tight leash after a 30-hour journey to the other side of the world. Against Auckland, he again resisted the temptation to unleash his new signings, preferring managed minutes and controlled intensity over spectacle as Spurs cruised to a comfortable win.
The logic is clear: avoid soft-tissue injuries, avoid problems before the real stuff starts. The cost is equally obvious. Van Hecke and Robertson have now gone through two friendlies as spectators, stripped and ready in Spurs colours but never called upon.
Their next window opens on Wednesday.
Upcoming Matches
Tottenham face Sydney FC at 10.45am BST on July 29, a date De Zerbi has privately ringed as the point by which he wants his squad closer to full sharpness, his new faces integrated, his options clearer. If all goes to plan, that is when the supporters finally get a first live look at their rebuilt back line.
If not, the stakes rise again with the opposition. Chelsea await on Saturday, August 1, another 10.45am kick-off for UK viewers and a fixture that always carries an edge, friendly or not. By then, patience around Van Hecke and Robertson’s absence will be stretched as far as the flight that brought Spurs here.
Pre-season is about conditioning, structure, patterns of play. For two of Tottenham’s most intriguing arrivals, it now also feels like a countdown.
