Tottenham v Coventry City tonight is a chance for Spurs to turn a grim start around. They will have a familiar face on the bench. Dejan Kulusevski is in the matchday squad for the first time in almost 18 months. Tottenham host Frank Lampard’s in-form Sky Blues at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, kick-off 8pm.
Ahead of Tottenham v Coventry, Spurs have no league win in six games, and Sports Mole notes they are the only side in the Premier League still waiting for one. They have scored three goals, the second-lowest tally after six games in the club’s history, according to BBC Sport’s key stats. Their shot conversion rate of 3.6% is the worst in the division. Only two top-flight sides have completed more passes in the final third.
Kulusevski back for Tottenham v Coventry
Roberto De Zerbi gave supporters the news they have waited for since May 2025 at his Sunday press conference. “Yes, Kulusevski on the bench,” the head coach said, adding that the medical staff had given the okay and that it was “great news”, as the club website reports.
The Sweden midfielder has been out with a knee injury since the Premier League game against Crystal Palace on 11 May 2025, and this is his first matchday squad in 526 days. De Zerbi said Kulusevski “deserves to feel emotion on the pitch”. Savio and Lucas Bergvall are both out, and our full Tottenham injury update before Coventry has the complete picture.
Spurs chasing a first league win
The numbers behind the start make hard reading before Tottenham v Coventry. Tottenham have yet to lead in a league game this season or score before the 86th minute, and they have won five of their last 36 home league games, going back to November 2024. Dominic Solanke snatched a late equaliser in the 1-1 draw at Old Trafford. De Zerbi then took the squad to Marbella and said the target was to build a team. “We are a great group of players, but we are not a team yet,” he told BBC Sport.
Lampard’s Coventry arrive in form
For Tottenham v Coventry, the visitors are 16th, three points above bottom side Spurs. They have won back-to-back games against Nottingham Forest and Newcastle. They took no points and scored no goals in their first four games, then beat Newcastle 4-1. A win would make them only the fourth top-flight side to lose their opening four matches and then win three in a row.
The record also favours the visitors in one way. Coventry have lost their last five meetings with Spurs. They last won at Tottenham in 1997, a 2-1 final-day win that kept them up. But Lampard lost only eight of 41 games against Spurs as a player. He has been beaten in just two of six meetings as a manager, BBC Sport says. De Zerbi was complimentary about the opposition too, calling Coventry “a good team” who played “with energy and quality”.
Kick-off is at 8pm, with the head coach under pressure and a first win badly needed.
