Tottenham Faces Setback as Porro and Udogie Miss Everton Clash
Tottenham fans arrived at the stadium expecting tweaks, not a bombshell. Then the teams dropped.
No Pedro Porro. No Destiny Udogie. Not even on the bench.
After both had started last weekend’s flat 0-0 draw at Nottingham Forest, their complete absence from the squad for Everton’s visit sent a jolt through the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and lit up phones before kick-off.
De Zerbi’s calculated gamble
Roberto De Zerbi had flagged the danger 24 hours earlier. He didn’t hide behind vague “knocks” or late fitness tests. He spelled it out.
“Porro felt a small muscular problem, we have to see tomorrow if he’s available or not but in this moment I don’t want to take any risks. The same [with] Udogie,” he said on Friday.
This wasn’t a manager blindsided by bad news on the day. It was a deliberate call: protect two key full-backs now, or risk losing them for weeks.
De Zerbi expanded on Porro’s situation, tying the defender’s current fatigue to a long, draining season that included a winter on the biggest stage.
“Porro and Udogie are similar players because one, Pedro played a World Cup, a long World Cup and we already knew after the World Cup it could be a difficult management for him,” he explained.
Tottenham knew this was coming. High-intensity football, a heavy calendar, and a flying full-back who rarely spares himself. The warning signs were there.
Udogie’s fragile recent past
With Udogie, the concern runs even deeper. His talent is obvious. So is his medical file.
The Italian has already endured a stuttering spell in North London, last season disrupted by a string of injuries that constantly broke his rhythm and forced the club to tread carefully.
“For Udogie, last season [he] suffered many injuries, he played 60 minutes in Nottingham and we have to manage also Destiny in the best way we can,” De Zerbi added.
Sixty minutes at the City Ground, then off. Now out of the squad entirely. This is not about one game against Everton; it’s about making sure Tottenham don’t lose one of their most dynamic outlets for another long stretch.
A big-money believer in the project
If the back line took a hit, the mood around the middle of the pitch remains bullish.
Matheus Fernandes, the £85m summer signing, has walked into a club that hasn’t yet found a win in its opening matches. The results haven’t matched the ambition. He still sounds convinced he made the right call.
The midfielder, outstanding at West Ham before his move across London, pointed straight at De Zerbi’s intensity and vision as the decisive factor, even with Manchester United circling.
“I believe that I can be a much better player than I was last season,” the Portuguese international said. “If you look at the squad, it's a big team with big players, important players, players with experience, players with a lot of quality. So, when you play with better players, I think you play better. So, I believe that I can be much better.”
That is the bet Tottenham have made: a young, elite midfielder growing into a leader in a squad that, on paper, should not be stuck in first gear for long.
New faces under the spotlight
With Porro and Udogie sidelined, the narrative swung sharply towards their replacements. Two very different profiles. One teenager still feeling his way into the top flight. One seasoned Premier League operator who has seen most things this league can throw at a full-back.
Archie Gray, the highly rated signing from Leeds United, found himself thrust into a demanding brief. He has already been shuffled around the pitch since his move, asked to plug gaps and show his range. Now came a more specific task: stand up to Everton’s physical, direct wide men and still offer something going the other way.
For a player his age, it’s a harsh examination. For Tottenham, it’s also the reality of a squad trying to evolve while injuries bite.
On the opposite flank, Andy Robertson’s role was clear. The Scot has lived this level for years, built a reputation on relentless running and clever movement. Tottenham needed him to mimic what Udogie usually brings: those sharp inverted darts into midfield, the lung-busting overlaps that stretch a back line and open lanes for the forwards.
The absences of Porro and Udogie stripped some of the usual thrust from Tottenham’s blueprint. The response was to lean on experience on one side and potential on the other.
Whether that balance holds over a long season, with the schedule only getting heavier, may define just how far De Zerbi’s project can really go.
