Tottenham suffer Sandro Tonali injury blow as Roberto De Zerbi reveals four-man update | OneFootball

Spurs sweating over two stars’ fitness

Tottenham will be without £100million man Sandro Tonali for the Carabao Cup trip to Liverpool on Tuesday evening.

The summer signing has picked up a “knock” which will rule him out of the third-round clash at Anfield.

Roberto De Zerbi told reporters on Monday: "There is not Sandro Tonali because he felt a knock.”

Both defenders missed out as Spurs were held to a 0-0 draw at home to Everton over the weekend.

Udogie, who has been eased back into action given his history of muscle injuries, was left out as a precaution, with the club keen to manage his load.

World Cup winner Porro, meanwhile, suffered what De Zerbi described last week as a minor muscle injury.

The 27-year-old returned late to pre-season and missed Spurs’ opening weekend defeat to Brentford before starting against Newcastle and Nottingham Forest.

Asked about the duo, De Zerbi said that the Italian would be fit to face the Reds, while right-back Porro was still sidelined.

Return: Destiny Udogie

PA

“Pedro is still not available. Udogie, yes [he is available]," the Spurs head coach said on Monday.

He also confirmed that long-term absentee Dejan Kulusevski, who has been out since the end of the 2024-25 season with a serious kneecap problem, is still a way off a return to action.

Spurs overhauled their medical department this summer under the guidance of performance director Dan Lewindon, after narrowly avoiding relegation to the Championship following a campaign beset by injuries.

In July, they added Ali James (head of medical services), Tom Tombleson (head of athletic development) and Agostino Tibaudi (strength and conditioning coach) to the club's performance department.

Part of their new approach, which also included improvements to the first-team gym, has seen the medical department and De Zerbi combine to help manage the minutes of his squad.

Udogie was withdrawn alongside Savio on the hour mark against Nottingham Forest, while Rodrigo Bentancur and Mateus Fernandes were taken off after 63 minutes against Everton.

De Zerbi did not specifically state if his decision to withdraw Bentancur and Fernandes was down to the advice of the club’s medical department. But both players endured disrupted pre-season preparations.