Savio enjoyed an eye-catching Tottenham debut vs. Charlton Athletic in the EFL Cup.
Tottenham Hotspur progressed to the EFL Cup third round with a dominant 5-1 victory over Charlton Athletic at home on Wednesday evening.
New signing Savio marked his Spurs debut with a goal and an assist off the substitutes’ bench. The Brazilian international, signed from Manchester City for an initial £75m, was given a standing ovation when he came on in the 71st minute with Tottenham leading 3-0.
He made it 4-0 just 11 minutes after coming on, dancing past a couple of players before finding the net from the edge of the box. Savio was heavily involved in the home side’s fifth goal as his shot took a deflection off Ben Davies and went past the Charlton Athletic goalkeeper in the 85th minute. However, Tottenham failed to keep a clean sheet, with defender Lloyd Jones planting a header at the back post for the Addicks.
Roberto De Zerbi opens up on Savio’s Tottenham debut
Roberto De Zerbi has been waiting for the arrival of Savio for months. After long and taxing negotiations with Man City, the 22-year-old finally became a Tottenham player on Tuesday afternoon. Having been heavily involved in Man City’s pre-season, he was fit and ready to play against Charlton Athletic.
De Zerbi decided to use Savio off the bench, and the tricky winger gave the Spurs fans a first glimpse of what he might bring this season. When asked if it was a perfect debut for Savio, the Tottenham boss said in his post-match press conference (h/t Football London):
“Yes, it is a perfect day for him. I think his biggest step and biggest improvement is to increase the number of goals because (with) his qualities he is one of the best wingers. But the best wingers score many goals. I spoke with him yesterday, two days ago.
“We put the goal on 10-12 goals because we need 10-12 goals from the wingers. Last season, I think we suffered too much. Also, because the number of goals were not enough to compete for nothing more than that position.”
Perfect night for Savio
De Zerbi wanted a response from the poor 3-0 defeat to Brentford last weekend, and he got that from his boys against Charlton Athletic. The Lilywhites made a marked improvement on the defeat at Brentford, and while there is no denying Charlton aren’t close to the level of the Bees, it was about getting more fitness for the players and becoming cohesive.
Also, the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium faithful were keen to watch new signing Savio in action. All of those got their tickets’ worth as Savio made an immediate impact. The Brazilian looked very sharp and direct right from the moment he came on the pitch, scoring and assisting on his Tottenham debut.
Now, the expectation will be for the 22-year-old to carry the momentum into this weekend’s big clash against Newcastle United at home.
