Tottenham Hotspur midfielder James Maddison has fractured his shoulder and is set to be out for up to two weeks.
The injury occurred from a fall during their Premier League-opening 3-0 loss to Brentford, and a subsequent MRI scan showed a slight break.
Maddison trained on Monday and though the scans showed minor damage, there is optimism that the issue is not serious.
Speaking at a news conference on Tuesday, Spurs head coach Roberto De Zerbi said Maddison had sustained a “small injury” to his shoulder during his substitute appearance.
Maddison had limited involvement in Tottenham’s pre-season schedule after what De Zerbi described as a “small problem” in the summer.
The 29-year-old missed almost the entirety of the 2025-26 season with a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), and returned in May as a substitute in the 1-1 draw against Leeds, making two further appearances from the bench at the end of the campaign.
That injury had seen Maddison sidelined from competitive action for 12 months. The midfielder said he suffered a partial tear of the ACL during the Europa League semi-final first leg against Bodo/Glimt in May 2025, before attempting to return in a pre-season fixture against Newcastle United three months later, where he sustained a full rupture.
Maddison also suffered a significant ankle injury which kept him out for around two months in his debut season at Spurs, after signing from Leicester City in June 2023 in a deal worth over £40million ($54.6m). He has made a total of 79 appearances since joining the club.
Injuries have been a recurring theme for Spurs in recent seasons and De Zerbi is still contending with a number of key absences in his squad. Xavi Simons and Wilson Odobert are out long-term with ACL injuries alongside Dejan Kulusevski, who missed the entire 2025-26 season.
Mohammed Kudus has been out since he suffered a quad injury in January, but has returned to training, while Micky van de Ven and Pape Matar Sarr missed the Brentford opener.
Pedro Porro was also absent, as a result of a shortened pre-season following his involvement with Spain in their World Cup success.