Jose Mourinho explains Toby Alderweireld absence in Newcastle vs Tottenham
According to the Evening Standard, Tottenham boss Jose Mourinho has provided an explanation for the absence of Toby Alderweireld against Newcastle United. But his statements have left people within the club puzzled and confused.
Tottenham were held to a 2-2 draw by Newcastle United at St. James’ Park on Sunday. Harry Kane scored a quickfire double to put us in the lead after Joelinton had scored for the Magpies. However, a late equaliser from Joe Willock ensured the spoils ended up being shared.
On the afternoon, the Tottenham defence, barring the impressive Joe Rodon, was shambles. Davinson Sanchez, in particular, endured a torrid outing as he was at fault for both the goals that Newcastle scored. This raised the question as to why senior pro, Toby Alderweireld wasn’t part of the matchday squad.
Mourinho claimed that Alderweireld, along with fellow defender Serge Aurier, hadn’t travelled to Tyneside as they returned late from international duty.
“They were fit, yeah, but they reported for training only yesterday. They went for their national teams and they didn’t make the Covid tests on time to be in the training session on Thursday, not even on Friday. They come only yesterday.”
However, his statements have created some confusion within the club as the Evening Standard‘s sources have disputed Mourinho’s claims. Alderweireld is said to have been back in London on Wednesday afternoon following Belgium’s game against Belarus on Tuesday.
After undergoing his coronavirus test, the centre-back took part in team training both on Thursday and Friday, as per the report. In fact, he was seen in the training pictures that the club shared on the official website on Thursday.
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The report also adds that it may have been Aurier and Steven Bergwijn, another player who did not travel to Newcastle, may have been the ones that returned late from international duties.
Mourinho, though, insisted that the pair weren’t left behind because of indiscipline but only due to them being unavailable to train over the week. However, that may not exactly have been the case with Alderweireld according to the report.
