Roberto de Zerbi has used all the tools at his disposal to discover the missing spark in struggling Tottenham Hotspur, from acting as an amateur psychologist to team bonding dinners, then a sunshine break in Marbella.

The answer, at least when Spurs finally moved off the bottom of the table with their first Premier League win this season against Coventry City, came in the shape of James Maddison as he made his first start in 18 months.

He missed most of last season after suffering an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury in pre-season, before fracturing his shoulder in the opening-weekend defeat at Brentford in this campaign.

The 29-year-old finally made it back into the Spurs starting line-up to face Coventry - and delivered in spectacular style to set them on the way to a 3-1 victory that De Zerbi hopes will finally give their season lift-off.

Maddison could barely keep the smile from his face as he warmed up, then made his mark in the 14th minute by showing what Spurs have been missing with a brilliant right-foot finish from 20 yards, taking Mohammed Kudus' pass first time to arc a sweeping strike high beyond Coventry City keeper Carl Rushworth.

It was a moment of sweet relief for Maddison, the goal getting loud gasps of admiration from Spurs supporters as it was shown several times on the stadium's big screens.

Even though the goal came against his former club, Maddison celebrated with his trademark imaginary dart throwing motion before kissing the badge on his Spurs shirt.

Maddison's significance to Spurs is illustrated by the fact they had won just 12 out of 57 Premier League games since his last top-flight goal, in a 1-0 victory against Manchester United in February 2025. They had averaged less than a point a game since then.

And since his last start, at Liverpool on 27 April 2025, Spurs had won only 11 of 49 league games in between, losing 23.

Spurs cannot kid themselves that this was a glorious victory. It was actually only their sixth win in the past 37 home league games - drawing 10 and losing 21 - and just their fourth league victory overall in 2026, having played 27, drawn 10 and lost 13.

And it was the first time they scored three goals or more at home in the league since the opening day of last season, when they beat Burnley 3-0 in Thomas Frank's first game in charge.

There are still too many nerves around Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and in De Zerbi's team for calm and relaxation.