‘Honestly, I’m surprised’ – Conte provides Spurs fitness update on Ivan Perisic

Tottenham Hotspur head coach, Antonio Conte, has provided an update on the fitness of new signing Ivan Perisic ahead of the season opener against Southampton tomorrow. 

Perisic was the first new face through the Hotspur Way doors this summer, joining on a free transfer following the end of his contract with Inter Milan.

However, he will be far from lonely in terms of fellow new signings this summer, with Spurs already welcoming Fraser Forster, Yves Bissouma, Richarlison, Clement Lenglet, and Djed Spence to N17.

Perisic previously had success as a converted left-wing-back under Conte at Inter, and the Italian will be hoping to use him with similar effect in the Premier League.

While he arrived at Tottenham carrying an injury, Conte has revealed he is happy with the progress Perisic has made, even if he still has a decision to make on who will start against Southampton.

He said (Football London): “It’s normal after a serious injury to be struggling a bit to come back in the best physical condition. Honestly, I’m surprised because he reduced his time to recover. We are really happy.

“At the same time we are not worried but we have to pay a bit of attention to give him the right time to adapt himself to recover 100% after his injury.

“But I know him very well and he is a very good addition for us, it will be really important for his experience for the younger players.

“Sessegnon is a player who plays in the same role. Ivan can teach him a lot of situations to improve Sess, but even for sure he is a really good addition for us for many aspects. Then we will see. We have another training session tomorrow – play him or Sess (laughter).”

Spurs Web Opinion: 

I would be a little surprised if Perisic was risked for the season opener. It seems as though he is not 100% fit, while Ryan Sessegnon has a full pre-season under his belt. Therefore, I expect the young Englishman to at least start at left-wing-back tomorrow.

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