Roberto De Zerbi has revealed the reason behind Sandro Tonali’s exclusion from the Tottenham matchday squad on Tuesday, as his side demolished Charlton 5-1.
Tonali did not have the best of Tottenham debuts following his £100m move from Newcastle United in the summer, with Spurs’ midfield being overrun by Brentford last Saturday.
While De Zerbi chose to keep Lucas Bergvall in the team for yesterday’s clash, he was partnered by Rodrigo Bentancur, with Mateus Fernandes operating as the number ten in his full Tottenham debut.
While the likes of Micky van de Ven and Pedro Porro came off the bench to make their first appearances of the season, Tonali’s absence from the squad concerned some Spurs fans on social media.
Roberto De Zerbi reveals if Sandro Tonali will start for Tottenham against Newcastle
Given the bad luck Spurs have had with injuries over the past two years, one can understand why the supporters get nervous as soon as there is a big player missing from the squad.
However, De Zebri clarified that Tonali and Marcos Senesi are doing some fitness work at Hotspur Way, which is why they were rested against Charlton, and he confirmed that the Italian midfielder will start against his former side on Saturday.
When asked if the plan was to rest Tonali, the Tottenham boss told Football.London: “Sandro was in a plan to work with Marco Senesi yesterday, very strong, to improve their physical condition. Sandro has to work to feel better in terms of physical condition, but on Saturday he will play in the first XI.”
Micky van de Ven and Pedro Porro could make their first starts of the season against Newcastle
De Zerbi was also asked about Van de Ven and Kevin Danso after they both hit their head in the second half, and the Italian responded: “Nothing. It was a normal situation on the pitch, but nothing important.”
With the likes of Van de Ven, Porro and Udogie coming through yesterday’s game unscathed, the Tottenham boss faces some big selection decisions against Newcastle.
While De Zerbi is without James Maddison, Xavi Simons, Mohammed Kudus, Dejan Kulusevski and Wilson Odobert in attack, we will see something much closer to the club’s strongest eleven on Sunday than we did in the opening game of the season.
One would expect Van de Ven and Porro to start against Newcastle, while it will be very interesting to see the midfield combination that De Zerbi goes with.