Tottenham and Liverpool will lock horns in the most high-profile Carabao Cup second round clash of the match week.
Roberto De Zerbi’s side have won just one game this season – which was a 5-1 win against Charlton Athletic in the same competition.
Last week, against Everton, Tottenham had chances to score but didn’t make them count.
And after the game, De Zerbi was involved in a heated exchange with Mathys Tel as he was spotted barking out instructions to the young Frenchman.
And now, he has shed light on what he told the Tottenham forward after the game.
De Zerbi has big hopes for Mathys Tel at Tottenham
“At the end of the (Everton) game, I was explaining the body shape,” said De Zerbi in his pre-match press conference when asked about the incident involving Tel.
“He didn’t hear during the game because of the focus on the ball. And just to explain Mathys is a big talent.
“If I have to, to say something on the pitch, I thought to say in that moment to explain myself, before the end of the game.”
Late in the game, Tel received the ball in a good area, but instead of going forward, he passed it back to his defenders, which is what led to De Zerbi speaking to him after the game.
Such interactions are absolutely normal in competitive sport, so no one should dwell too much on it.
