James Maddison will be available for Tottenham against Crystal Palace on Saturday, Roberto De Zerbi has confirmed, and Destiny Udogie is back as well.
Both were serious question marks earlier this week, so this is a proper lift for Spurs before the 5.30pm kick-off at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Maddison came off in the 51st minute of last weekend’s 2-0 win at Chelsea with a groin problem, which at least eased fears of another serious knee injury.
De Zerbi hoped it wasn’t a big problem at Stamford Bridge, and on Friday he kept his answer short. Asked who was out and how the 29-year-old was doing, he said: “James is available.”
James Maddison injury update: what De Zerbi said
It wasn’t a normal week for the England international, and De Zerbi was open about that. He said: “This week Maddison didn’t work like other players, but for tomorrow is available. He’s a special player for us.”
Nor is he worried about a couple of missed sessions for a player who has spent so long coming back from injury. He said Maddison had been working very hard and consistently for four or five weeks, adding: “I think it’s not a problem if you lose two days and then we have to analyse if we take risk or not.”
That last line matters. De Zerbi also spoke about not risking new injuries, and said Spurs are lucky to have a big squad. Maddison has only started two Premier League games this season, opening the scoring with a long-range curler in one of them, the 3-1 win over Coventry City.
Who replaces James Maddison if De Zerbi holds back?
In our Tottenham predicted lineup vs Crystal Palace, we had Conor Gallagher coming in for Maddison. That call is now much closer than it was, but De Zerbi made it clear he has options.
He said Maddison has unique characteristics, with Xavi Simons the closest to him, but Simons is still recovering from his ACL injury. Dejan Kulusevski, who has made just two substitute appearances this season, can also play as a No.10 in a similar way. Beyond him, De Zerbi added: “We can play with Marmoush as a 10, with Conor Gallagher as a 10.” He has used Mateus Fernandes in the role too.
Destiny Udogie is back, with a caveat
Udogie missed the wins over Coventry and Chelsea after playing 74 minutes of the 1-1 draw with Manchester United, his 100th game for the club. De Zerbi confirmed the Italy international is ready, but sounded a note of caution about his week-to-week fitness: “He is available. He can’t work consistently during the week. After Man United he didn’t work with us for a long time.”
He again stood up for the medical staff as well: “We have great medical staff and we are taking the right decision, for the right players in the right moment.”
Who is still out for Tottenham vs Crystal Palace?
The good news stops there. Tosin Adarabioyo, Lucas Bergvall, Mykhaylo Mudryk and Savio all miss out, Wilson Odobert remains out with his long-term knee injury, and Rodrigo Bentancur is suspended.
De Zerbi also called the visit of Crystal Palace a big test after two straight league wins, saying mentality and hunger have to come first, and perhaps more so than they did against Coventry. Pierre Sage’s side, he added, are still alive, and it will be a tough game for both teams.
Verdict: this James Maddison injury update changes our Palace XI
We’d start him. Spurs have just won at Stamford Bridge, Palace are the kind of side you want your best passer against, and De Zerbi plainly doesn’t think two lost training days are a reason to leave out a fit player. The sensible plan is an hour from Maddison, then Gallagher or Kulusevski to finish the job.
Udogie is a different case. Andrew Robertson started at left-back at Stamford Bridge, and after a long spell away from the group, a place on the bench looks about right. Having both back still gives De Zerbi a real choice on Saturday.
