In rather classic Tottenham Hotspur fashion, their start to the season has been a topsy-turvy state of affairs.

Indeed, after spending a shedload on improving their starting XI, they suffered a remarkable 3-0 defeat at the hands of Brentford last weekend. This was not in the script.

Alas, against Championship side Charlton Athletic on Wednesday night, Roberto De Zerbi's men bounced back in emphatic fashion, winning 5-1 in the Carabao Cup.

At the heart of that victory were three players; Mikey Moore, Mateus Fernandes and new arrival Savio.

Fernandes was making his first start for the Lilywhites and registered an assist while the latter scored a tremendous goal on debut to open his account.

So, two of their big-money arrivals have hit the ground running. Now it's over to Sandro Tonali who needs to make an improvement.

Why Spurs already need more from Tonali

Rested for the visit of Charlton on Wednesday, perhaps it might have been a good idea to actually play the Italian.

After all, plenty in Spurs colours picked up some vital confidence in midweek, dazzling against the second-tier opposition.

Tonali will have to wait to avenge his performance away at Brentford. It would be safe to say this was not the display supporters expected from their club-record £100m man.

The midfielder, making his debut, did not have much of a positive impact on the game, notably nearly blasting a shot out of the ground at one stage. That summed it up.

Compared to Brentford's record arrival, Mamadou Sangare, he was completely outclassed.

Still, Tonali will no doubt come good. After all, he is one of the finest midfielders we have seen in England in recent years. He is too good not to.

Paul Scholes even suggested last season that the midfield maestro is "better than Declan Rice". That's a bold statement but it is evidence of the calibre of player Spurs have acquired here.

How Spurs can repeat their Tonali masterclass

De Zerbi has come into Tottenham and made an almighty impact in such a short space of time.

He kept them up by the skin of their teeth on the final day of the 2025/26 campaign and since then, he has broken the club's transfer record twice, first on Fernandes and then on Tonali.

One of his key objectives has been to fill the squad with Premier League-proven talent. Spurs haven't signed a single player this season from outside of the English top-flight with Fernandes and Tonali being joined by Martin Dubravka, Marcos Senesi, Andy Robertson, Jan Paul van Hecke and Savio. They have also landed Omar Marmoush from Manchester City.

Well, next in line could have been one of the Premier League's best goalkeepers; Emiliano Martinez.

A report from TEAMtalk this week indicates that intermediaries held talks with both Chelsea and Spurs about signing Martinez from Aston Villa.

After the Villans purchased Zion Suzuki this summer, it has looked likely that the former Arsenal man will depart the Midlands. Even before then, he looked poised to join Juventus only for a deal to fall apart. As a result, his representatives are pushing to find him a new club and he could leave to the tune of just £10m.

For a price tag like that, this would have been a serious signing. For £90m cheaper than Tonali, they could have repeated the very masterclass that brought him to north London.

To sign a former Gunner would have been controversial but if they had decided to launch a move for the South American, they would have picked up someone cut from a similar cloth as their new Italian midfielder.

Why? Well, in the words of the legendary Lionel Messi, Martinez is "one of the best players in the world". Like Tonali, he's a proven Premier League player with an elite mindset, the will to win at all costs.

He has been one of the most consistent players around. He has played 228 times in the English top-flight and has picked up 67 clean sheets in that time.

He's a World Cup winner, a Europa League winner and in 2022 and 2024, he was officially named The Best FIFA Goalkeeper.

Now 33, his stock has fallen slightly in the last couple of years but he is still an exceptional gloveman and he proved as much during the recent World Cup.

As Tonali will ultimately prove to be in the middle of the park, Martinez would be a colossal upgrade between the sticks for De Zerbi's side. Antonin Kinsky has recovered well from that horrendous game against Atletico Madrid but he was again at fault against Brentford last weekend.

He could not have done anything for Keane Lewis-Potter's goal but he did spill the ball straight into the path of Vitaly Janelt for the hosts' second of the game.

Kinsky is now the club's number one but still has plenty to prove. In a crucial transition phase, Martinez would have been the perfect stop-gap for Spurs.