Tottenham spent big in the summer transfer window but are still trying to compete with Europe's biggest clubs while struggling to see a return on their significant investment in the last few years

Tottenham rank among the bottom four clubs worldwide for player appreciation over the last five years, with only Manchester United, Al-Nassr and Al-Hilal recording worse figures in the CIES Football Observatory study. Spurs oversaw a major squad rebuild in the summer, bringing in 10 new signings for Roberto De Zerbi alongside a host of departures.

In total, Tottenham committed £394million during the transfer window, with the option to add a further £75million next summer through the potential deal for on-loan Ukrainian winger Mykhailo Mudryk.

They also completed the fourth-biggest sale in their history, with Sandro Tonali arriving for £100m. His move followed the signings of Mateus Fernandes from West Ham for £85m and Jan Paul van Hecke from Brighton in a £52m deal.

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De Zerbi also added three players on free transfers, with experienced trio Andy Robertson, Marcos Senesi and Martin Dubravka joining the north London club.

Despite their significant spending, however, Spurs also missed out on 11 potential signings who could have strengthened the struggling squad.

The Lilywhites currently sit 19th in the Premier League table and are yet to win a league game, having recorded three draws and three defeats.

After narrowly avoiding relegation last season, De Zerbi was backed with substantial investment in the transfer market, but that spending has yet to translate into results.

The club's position could raise further concerns among officials following the latest rankings from the CIES Football Observatory, which assess the appreciation or depreciation in value of non-academy players signed over the past five years.

The calculation takes into account the balance between transfer fees paid and received for players who have since been permanently sold, as well as the fees paid and current estimated transfer values of those still at their clubs.

Spurs' player appreciation total stands at -€188million (£159million) , placing them among the four worst-performing clubs in the 106-team study.

Only Al-Hilal, United and Al-Nassr rank below them, with respective totals of -€502m (-£423m), -€405m (-£342m) and -€229m (-£193m). Combined, the three clubs have recorded a negative player appreciation balance of €1.136billion (£956m).

United's figure of -€405m (-£342m) is the largest depreciation recorded by a European club in the study, highlighting the scale of the financial challenges facing some of the game's biggest spenders.