De Zerbi on Maddison injury, Solanke and 'changing mentality'

Katie Stafford - BBC Sport journalist Tue, August 25, 2026 at 3:14 PM UTC

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Spurs boss Roberto de Zerbi has been speaking to the media before Wednesday's Carabao Cup second-round tie against Championship side Charlton Athletic at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium (kick-off 19:45 BST).

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Here are the key lines from his news conference:

Striker Dominic Solanke is available to play and Micky van de Ven and Pedro Porro will be named on the bench.

Mohammed Kudus remains sidelined and James Maddison will miss the match because of "a small injury" in his shoulder.

De Zerbi is unsure whether new signing Savio will "be ready" to start the game, but he is expected to be in the matchday squad.

On Savio: "In terms of one-on-one, he's one of the best players and can play on either side.

He said his side had enough quality to "do much better" in the opening 3-0 defeat at Brentford, but changing the mentality is "a big challenge".

More from De Zerbi on Sunday's loss: "We need to get used to winning the matches. We have to change the mood. I think the environment has to change - the players inside and the people inside have to change this mentality."

The Italian said Solanke is an "important player but he has to play much better than [he did] against Brentford", adding: "We need the striker to hold the ball when the opposition go man-to-man."

De Zerbi said Spurs have been "working very well" in this summer's transfer market, but he couldn't say whether there will be any more incomings or outgoings.

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Source: “AOL Sports”