Wigan Athletic boss Steve Bruce insists Tottenham's sluggish start is only temporary.

"When you're making big changes it takes time to settle," said Bruce. "I don't care what player you are, when you're coming from Russia or other parts of Europe then you need time.

"We've experienced that here. For instance, when Wilson Palacios was at Birmingham he took three or four months to settle. And we had Maynor Figueroa here for five months before we gave him his debut against Manchester United last season.

"You have to let them get used to the conditions, to what's expected of them and, most importantly, to try to adapt to the English way of life.

"Believe me, that's not easy because we're a strange race, and us English are hopeless at trying to adapt when we go and live abroad.

"It's a very difficult time to get them all gelling and playing the way you want to, and patience is the key.

"We're only four games in. If you're talking about eight to 12 games then you can start analysing it more deeply."