Several Tottenham players will represent their nations during the international break after the Aston Villa game.
On Tuesday night, Tottenham Hotspur crashed out of the EFL Cup following a 3-1 defeat to Liverpool at Anfield, with the visitors’ only goal coming from a set piece. The defeat was a bitter pill to swallow as it ended Roberto De Zerbi and his boys’ dreams of going deep into the Carabao Cup.
Spurs are back in Premier League action on Saturday as they host a lowly Aston Villa side. It is important to note that both teams are still winless in the Premier League, so there will be desperation to break their duck in N17.
Roberto De Zerbi reveals plans for injured players during the upcoming international break
This will be Tottenham’s final game before the September international break. During the extended hiatus, Roberto De Zerbi will be without a whole host of players, who will be jetting off to represent their national teams. However, there will be some players staying at the club, especially those who are injured and working their way toward fitness.
On Friday afternoon, the Tottenham boss was asked about his plans with the players staying back in North London for the upcoming international break. He said that there will be individual training plans devised for players to ensure that the international break is used to the best effect.
“Yes, for that players for sure, but also for the others, because we started in the pre-season without a great physical condition,” De Zerbi said in his press conference.
“The players, they have to understand the intensity of the Premier League, but also in Europe it’s very high intensity, and OK the holidays, everything, but they can’t lose all their physical condition.
“They have to work, we have prepared the plan for the individual training, because when the group comes back to us, we have to start immediately.”
Dejan Kulusevski and James Maddison need the extended international break the most
Tottenham have been impacted massively since the start of last season following serious knee injuries to Dejan Kulusevski and James Maddison.
Kulusevski was arguably Spurs’ best player during an injury-affected 2024-25 campaign, before he missed the whole of last season due to this long-standing knee problem. It was a similar story for Maddison, who sustained an ACL damage last August before he returned ahead of schedule in May to help the Lilywhites retain their top-flight status.
The good news relayed by De Zerbi on Friday afternoon is that Kulusevski joined full team training earlier this week. The Sweden international, who was not included in the national team squad for the UEFA Nations League games against Romania and Poland, must be raring to make a comeback in October or November. Maddison, meanwhile, will get further time to work more on his fitness and make himself robust to start games for Tottenham again.
De Zerbi’s open acknowledgement about individual training plans and programmes indicates a clear focus on getting his key players fit and ready for the post-September break rigours.
