Tottenham Hotspur winger Savio was a surprise absentee for Saturday's Premier League match against Newcastle United, with head coach Roberto De Zerbi revealing the Brazilian suffered a muscle fatigue setback.
The north London club hosted the Magpies in the evening kick-off, with Omar Marmoush starting up front just days after completing his loan move from Manchester City. Savio, who joined Spurs in a deal worth up to £85million, had made a perfect debut in the Carabao Cup win over Charlton Athletic on Tuesday night, coming off the bench to score and assist in a 5-1 victory.
Muscle fatigue rules Savio out
Speaking to Sky Sports shortly before kick-off, De Zerbi explained the decision to leave Savio out of the squad. 'There was bad news yesterday, before training in the afternoon,' the Italian head coach said. 'He [Savio] suffered muscle fatigue and the medical staff obviously didn't want to take a risk. I agree with them.'
The 22-year-old had not trained in the previous 10 days, and De Zerbi noted that the brief appearance against Charlton made it difficult to recover. 'It's not the right moment [to play], especially because he didn't work in the last 10 days. 20 minutes against Charlton, was tough to rest for the days after.'
De Zerbi expects return for Forest clash
Despite the setback, De Zerbi is optimistic about Savio's availability for the next match. 'But for the next game, I think there will be no problem,' he added.
Tottenham travel to Nottingham Forest, who drew 2-2 at Liverpool earlier, for their next Premier League fixture next Saturday. Spurs are already dealing with a growing injury list, with James Maddison and Pape Matar Sarr sidelined, while Xavi Simons, Wilson Odobert and Dejan Kulusevski remain long-term absentees.
