What is the latest on Cristian Romero's injury?
The
news is not positive. Not good. The injury is serious. I think it'll take time to see
him again. Surely next year- we need to check his injury week by week but the injury is
serious. Now he's trying to recover but he needs a long time. He needs time to recover.
It's a pity because you know he's an important player for us. The injury is very serious.
Does that mean he'll be back next year?
Next year. January, February, I don't know but for sure in 2021 he has finished playing.
For this month. We have to wait and to recover well but the injury is serious.
The Spurs fans were angry and embarrassed by Mura are are hoping to see a reaction.
Will they see a reaction tomorrow night?
Yeah but we were all very angry. The performance was poor and wasn't good. It wasn't a good
game for us. But now I think we need to move on. We have a game tomorrow against Brentford
and we know Brentford is a good team.
We have to be well organised because they are well-organised. They play together for
many years. They have a good, young coach. We need a good performance.
We also need to face the game well prepared. There are many aspects, physically, mentally,
and also tactically.
You have very high standards, so how long will it take the players to reach those standards?
At the moment, my only thoughts are about getting the best out of my players. I think
that in this moment, in my mind there is only this. I've found a group of players who want
to improve, they want to improve their level and for sure we need to improve the level
if we want to be competitive and if we want to fight for something important.
But you know that in this moment the level is not so high. I think that's honest on one
hand, but on the other hand, it can give us more desire and more will to work and to improve
ourselves.
I think that's the only way that in this moment we have to try in this season to be competitive
or at least to fight. To look up and not in the middle or down.
What is the latest on Giovani Lo Celso and how do you get the best out of a player who
has had so many stops and starts to his Tottenham career?
Giovani Lo Celso, like Cristian Romero, they were injured with the national team. For sure
it was a pity but Giovani's situation is much, much better than Romero.
My expectation is to see him the day after we play against Brentford. He's started to
work, to work on the pitch. For sure Giovani is another player we need to try to exploit,
to exploit him. He's a good player and now I want to work with him.
Can Tottenham supporters expect new players to come in
and some to leave?
Honestly when I decided to become Tottenham manager I didn't speak about this aspect.
When you take a job, you have to make your evaluations and you have to feel your sensation
and honestly I felt Tottenham was the right club to work and to bring my ideas and philosophy
of football.
For this reason, I accepted the job. I didn't talk about January or the way to improve the
team. I repeat: I'm here because I have great enthusiasm, great patience to start a new
work with Tottenham. If I'm here it's because I want to build something important with the
club. I know at the moment we're a bit far from the top clubs but we need to work to
improve the situation.
To start and to also to create a good basis where you start
– and then you build. We can do this and then our fans will support us and for sure,
at the moment, it's not simple. But I have great enthusiasm and great patience and I
believe that here we can build something important. We need patience and time but I have great
desire to do something great.
Is Steven Bergwijn part of
your plans?
We're talking about
a player that has important skills and it was a pity for me – but not the national
team, because he scored in qualifying for Holland – because I would have liked to
have him during the two weeks on the international break to work with him and know him much better,
but for sure he has great quality.
He's good one v one, he's fast, he has quality, he can beat a man and also score. Now we're
working. Now also he's understanding what I want from him and for me, he's one of the
strikers who can play in all three positions of the strikers.
Surely he's a player that I have to make an important evaluation of. But he's in my squad
and I count on him for sure. Tomorrow's he's ready and available. Mura he had a problem,
otherwise he would have played, but tomorrow's he's ready and available and I count on him.