Tottenham manager Roberto De Zerbi has praised three of his Spurs stars following their stellar display against Charlton Athletic in the Carabao Cup, but there is one thing he wasn’t pleased with.
Roberto De Zerbi demanded a response from his Tottenham Hotspur players in his pre-match press conference on Tuesday, before Spurs took to the pitch against Charlton Athletic in the Carabao Cup.
The Spurs head coach called for Dominic Solanke to show more fight when leading the line up front after his lacklustre display from the bench against Brentford.
He then set a challenge for new signing Savio after his big-money move from Manchester City, calling on him to score 15-20 goals this season.
Roberto De Zerbi praises Savio after Tottenham’s 5-1 win
The reaction he wanted was what he got, as Spurs were rampant at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in round two of their Carabao Cup tie against Charlton Athletic, where they beat the Championship side 5-1.
Several players were impressive on the night, including new signing Savio, who managed a goal and an assist despite having only played twenty minutes of football after coming off the bench.
Solanke also grabbed a goal with his only shot on target after reacting quickest to a mix-up in the Charlton box, while Mikey Moore was equally as impressive with a goal and an assist.
Head coach Roberto De Zerbi has now shared his reaction to the performance of his team, handing out praise to those who stepped up.
He told the club’s official account: “We scored five goals. I’m sorry for the goal we conceded. Because to change mentality, we have to be angry if we concede goal like this at the end of the game.
“Very good news, because Savio played twenty minutes. Pedro Porro and Micky van de Ven they are back on the pitch. Rodrigo plays a great game like, mateus Fernandes. Mikey Moore another great performance. So we’re happy.”
De Zerbi’s mentality challenge continues for Spurs
Savio could well have ended with two goals last night, had his strike not come off Ben Davies before finding its way into the net.
And while many fans are raving about the 22-year-old’s performance, the Tottenham boss, still wants more from the new signing.
Speaking about Savio, he continued: “Yes, the challenge with Savio is not to put him on the pitch and say what a player. But what a goal scorer because he has to improve the number of the goals.
“He has all qualities to become one of the best winger in the world but he has to improve to increase the number of goals and assists because at the end football is goal and assists for the winger for the number ten for attackers players.”
De Zerbi has been focused on the mentality of his side, especially in the Carabao Cup, with the Spurs boss calling for everyone within the club to take the competition seriously.
That desire to win will be tested once more when Tottenham take to the pitch in the next round of the Carabao Cup.
De Zerbi’s side are coming up against Andoni Iraola’s Liverpool in round three of the cup competition in what is set to be a cracking game at Anfield.