Roberto De Zerbi press conference injury update ahead of Aston Villa vs Tottenham, with latest on Solanke, Maddison, Udogie and Spurs squad fitness
Tottenham travel to Villa Park on Sunday knowing they need results quickly to keep their Premier League survival hopes alive.
Spurs sit two points from safety with just four matches remaining, and every point now carries added importance as the season enters its final stretch.
Roberto De Zerbi has four points from a possible nine since taking charge, finally landing Spurs’ first victory of 2026 last weekend in the 0-1 win over Wolves.
However, the Italian has also had to contend with a growing list of injuries that continues to shape his team selection.
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— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) May 1, 2026
De Zerbi urges focus despite mounting injuries
The injury problems have not eased since his arrival, with Cristian Romero ruled out for the season, Mohammed Kudus sidelined long-term, and fresh setbacks affecting Xavi Simons and Dominic Solanke.
Solanke will miss Sunday’s trip due to a hamstring issue, although De Zerbi stopped short of putting a timeframe on his return. Guglielmo Vicario is also not ready to return, while Destiny Udogie could yet come back into contention.
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James Maddison, who has been working his way back from a serious pre-season knee injury, has recently returned to the bench. De Zerbi is cautious over his involvement.
“I don’t know,” the Italian said when asked if Maddison could feature at Aston Villa. “I would like to play with him because he’s a special player but we need to consider the physical condition and a lot of things. I think he can be important in the next three games.”
Despite the setbacks, De Zerbi made it clear he does not want injuries to become an excuse for his side.
“Listen, I want to be clear one time. The most important challenge now is to silence the voice inside of us, inside of the players, the staff, the fans.
“This voice produce negative thoughts and the voice says we are unlucky, we have too many injuries. We lost Xavi Simons and he was one of the most important players for us in the past two games.
“Our medical staff is not good enough, our stadium pitch is not good enough, our training pitch is not good enough. Winning two or three games in a row no because we hadn’t won a game in 2026. It’s all negative things and it’s rubbish.
“I want to keep the focus on myself and the quality of my players. We go to play one of the best teams in the Premier League at the moment but if Tottenham win at Villa Park it’s not a miracle.
“Maybe we lose but we have the quality to win this game. We have to be positive because we are lucky to work in a big club.
“If Xavi and Solanke are injured we can play with Kolo Muani, Tel, Richarlison. These are not bad players.”