Sports Mole

Tottenham Hotspur head coach Roberto De Zerbi has suggested that Mohammed Kudus' recent injury setback will influence how he handles the comeback of James Maddison.

Spurs square off against Brighton & Hove Albion on Saturday evening in what is viewed as their biggest match of the season, with De Zerbi taking charge of his first home game when the club are sitting in 18th place in the Premier League table.

There had initially been hope that Kudus could return from a thigh injury for the run-in, only for the Ghana international to suffer a setback in training and be ruled out for the rest of the campaign.

While that has come as a major blow to the North Londoners, there has recently been the welcome sight of Maddison making his own return to training.

The England international has spent more than eight months on the sidelines with a serious knee injury sustained during pre-season.

Will Maddison return for Spurs this season?

Speaking at a press conference on Friday, De Zerbi seemingly left the door open for the playmaker to come back into contention before the end of 2025-26.

Nevertheless, the Italian hinted that Kudus suffering a recurrence of his previous injury so soon after his return to training is likely to influence his thinking.

As quoted by The Standard, De Zerbi said: "I don't know. I don't know yet. I don't want to push too much because we lost Kudus in this way.

"I used to waiting the players when they are available, totally available to play and to restart the training.

"Because it's better to lose one game more than to take a risk for another new injury.”

Is a Maddison return in 2025-26 realistic?

As this point in time, Spurs have six Premier League fixtures remaining, the last of which will be played on May 24.

Unless Spurs find wins and fast, they will be scrapping for every point until the closing weekend as they bid to avoid relegation to the Championship.

With the stakes increasing by the week, Maddison may have to bide his time. As much as Spurs could benefit from his creativity and threat in the final third, the 29-year-old would need to manage his desire to make an instant impact.

Realistically-speaking, Maddison will need to come through several weeks of training before he is considered for a place in the squad.

Nevertheless, if he can avoid any setbacks and build up his strength and fitness, a place on the substitutes' bench against Leeds United on May 11 could be a possibility.

Spurs then conclude the season with fixtures against Chelsea and Everton respectively.

Roberto De Zerbi will face his former club when Tottenham Hotspur take on Brighton & Hove Albion in a crucial Premier League clash on Saturday.

For Brighton, the fixture presents another opportunity to climb the table and strengthen their push for European qualification, but for Spurs, the stakes are far higher.

Sitting in the relegation zone with just 30 points from 32 matches, the north London side are in a perilous position, with survival now the immediate priority before any deeper reflection on their struggles.

Winless in 14 Premier League matches since the turn of the year, De Zerbi must quickly find a way to reverse their fortunes, having already lost his first game in charge against Sunderland.

Tottenham must avoid embarrassing losing record

This will be De Zerbi’s first home match in charge, and he can take some encouragement from the fact that only one of the previous 13 Tottenham managers has lost their first home game.

However, that sole exception was his predecessor Igor Tudor, who suffered defeat against Arsenal earlier this year.

Spurs have managed just 10 points at home this season - the worst record in the league - making it difficult to draw much confidence ahead of this encounter.

According to BBC Sport, Tottenham last lost five consecutive home league matches in 1994, and they are now at risk of matching that unwanted 32-year-old record.

They currently trail West Ham and Nottingham Forest by two and three points respectively, and a short run of positive results could still secure their top-flight status with six games remaining.

Tottenham battling injury crisis - huge blow ahead of Brighton clash

Spurs are expected to be without their influential captain Cristian Romero, who could miss the remainder of the season due to a knee injury.

The centre-back has reportedly suffered a partial MCL tear, which could also impact his World Cup prospects.

The most in-form Premier League team face the most out-of-form Premier League team on Saturday evening, as Brighton & Hove Albion travel to North London to take on timid Tottenham Hotspur.

The Lilywhites have collected just one point from the last 18 on offer to plunge into the Premier League relegation zone, while the Seagulls have won five of their last six to move to within touching distance of the European spots.

Here, Sports Mole rounds up all of the latest team news for Tottenham and Brighton.

TOTTENHAM vs. BRIGHTON

TOTTENHAM

Out: Cristian Romero (knee), Dejan Kulusevski (knee), Wilson Odobert (knee), James Maddison (knee), Mohammed Kudus (thigh), Ben Davies (ankle), Rodrigo Bentancur (thigh)

Doubtful: Guglielmo Vicario (hernia)

Sports Mole's predicted XI: Kinsky; Porro, Danso, Van de Ven, Udogie; Gray, Gallagher; Tel, Simons, Richarlison; Solanke

BRIGHTON

Out: Lewis Dunk (suspended), Adam Webster (knee), Stefanos Tzimas (knee)

Doubtful: James Milner (unspecified)

Tottenham Hotspur have reportedly emerged as the favourites to sign Bournemouth defender Marcos Senesi.

With the Argentina international having entered the final six months of his contract, it has become apparent that he is likely to leave the Vitality Stadium on a free transfer.

Senesi is viewed as an attractive option having accumulated 110 appearances in the Premier League since his arrival in 2022.

As well as Barcelona, Premier League clubs Liverpool, Manchester United and Chelsea have all been credited with an interest in the 28-year-old.

However, according to The Athletic, Spurs are the surprise frontrunners in the race for his signature.

Spurs favourites for Marcos Senesi

The report suggests that the North Londoners have already entered advanced negotiations for the centre-back.

Nevertheless, it is emphasised that any deal would be dependent on Spurs avoiding relegation to the Championship.

Roberto De Zerbi's side currently sit two points adrift of safety in 18th position in the Premier League table.

Furthermore, interest remains from elsewhere, and will likely continue while Spurs' fate remains uncertain.

Why would Marcos Senesi join Spurs?

The best-case scenario for Spurs in the short term is retaining their Premier League status for 2026-27 but without European football on their calendar.

With Senesi having never played Champions League football and having the opportunity to do so, picking Spurs would be an unusual move.

From the player's perspective, however, more chance of first-team football, living in London and being attracted to playing under Roberto De Zerbi may have swayed his decision.

Relegation-threatened Tottenham Hotspur will welcome Brighton & Hove Albion to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Saturday evening for a gigantic affair.

Spurs are currently down in 18th spot in the Premier League table, while Brighton are ninth and pushing to secure European football for the 2026-27 campaign.

Here, Sports Mole provides details of how to tune into the contest.

What time does Tottenham vs. Brighton kick off?

The Premier League match will kick off at 5.30pm UK time on Saturday.

Where is Tottenham vs. Brighton being played?

The game will take place at Tottenham's home ground, the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Brighton have been victorious on two of their last four away league fixtures against Tottenham, including a 4-1 victory in the corresponding fixture last term.

How to watch Tottenham vs. Brighton in the UK

TV channels

The Premier League contest will be available on Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Premier League for viewers in the UK.

Online streaming

Sky customers can access the Premier League match on Sky Go and on the Sky Sports app, while it is also available via Now TV's Sports membership.

Highlights

Sky Sports will show highlights, including any goals which have been scored, on their social media and YouTube channels, as well as on their dedicated app.

Meanwhile, on Saturday, BBC One's Match of the Day programme will begin at 10.25pm and run until 11.35pm, with highlights of the match also available via that avenue.

Tottenham vs. Brighton: What's the story?

There is simply no downplaying the size of this football match for Tottenham.

Spurs are firmly locked in a relegation battle this season, and they are the only Premier League team without a victory in 2026, losing nine and drawing five of their 14 matches.

Tottenham are on the second-longest winless league run in their history, and they will be coming up against a Brighton team that have won five of their last six Premier League matches.

Brighton have also won their last three Premier League away games and will be bidding to make it four in a row for the first time in their history, which would significantly boost their European hopes.

The Seagulls are ninth in the table on 46 points, just two points behind sixth-placed Chelsea.

Saturday's match will be special for new Tottenham head coach Roberto De Zerbi, who was in charge of Brighton between September 2022 and June 2024, boasting a record of 38 wins, 22 draws and 29 losses from his 89 matches at the helm.

Tottenham Hotspur have been given a much-needed lift at a crucial stage of their fight for Premier League survival.

New Spurs boss Roberto De Zerbi is preparing for a huge game against Brighton and Hove Albion this weekend and ahead of it, two important midfielders have returned to training.

Their comeback could provide exactly the boost that Spurs have been crying out for.

Roberto De Zerbi handed double Spurs injury boost before Brighton clash

Indeed, Spurs appear to have been boosted by the return of both James Maddison and Rodrigo Bentancur to first-team training.

The pair were spotted working with the squad at Hotspur Way ahead of this weekend's clash with the Seagulls, which will be De Zerbi’s first meeting with his former club since taking charge of Spurs.

Maddison is still not expected to be ready in time for Saturday’s match after spending almost the entire season out with an ACL injury suffered back in August. However, his return to training is still a major step forward as he pushes to make an appearance before the end of the campaign.

Bentancur, meanwhile, is further along in his recovery after missing the last few months with a hamstring injury suffered against AFC Bournemouth in January.

Tottenham have missed James Maddison and Rodrigo Bentancur

Spurs have badly missed both midfield players during a difficult spell in recent months.

Maddison brings creativity, energy and the ability to unlock defences in the final third, and Spurs have looked short of ideas without him, particularly in games where they have needed someone to take control and create chances.

Bentancur offers something vastly different to the Englishman. He gives Tottenham more balance, aggression and composure in possession, while his passing and work-rate make him vital in controlling the tempo of games.

If De Zerbi can get both players fit before the end of the season, it could make a huge difference to Tottenham’s hopes of staying up.

Brighton & Hove Albion skipper Lewis Dunk will be restricted to a watching brief when the Seagulls face Tottenham Hotspur in Saturday's Premier League showdown at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

The English defender collected his 10th booking of the season against Liverpool before the international break, one that carries a two-game top-flight suspension.

As Dunk served the first match of his punishment in last weekend's 2-0 victory over Burnley, the 34-year-old completes his ban this weekend, but Fabian Hurzeler has no fresh concerns to take into account.

With Dunk absent, Jan Paul van Hecke and Olivier Boscagli should form the central pairing in front of Bart Verbruggen, while Mats Wieffer continues at right-back after his two-goal showing at Turf Moor.

Forty-year-old midfielder James Milner is a slight doubt as he recovers from a minor training-ground injury, but fellow veteran Pascal Gross has been exhibiting his creative excellence ever since returning for a second Seagulls stint.

Since returning from Borussia Dortmund in January, Gross has created the fourth-most chances in the league (24), played the second-most passes into the box (108) and registered the most successful crosses (28) of all Premier League players.

The German and Yasin Ayari should therefore resume their partnership in the middle of the pack, while Danny Welbeck sports the captain's armband in an unchanged attacking quartet.

Brighton & Hove Albion possible starting lineup:

Verbruggen; Wieffer, Van Hecke, Boscagli, Kadioglu; Ayari, Gross; Gomez, Hinshelwood, Minteh; Welbeck

Tottenham Hotspur playmaker Xavi Simons should be given a chance to impress from the first whistle when Spurs host Brighton & Hove Albion in Saturday evening's Premier League encounter.

The Dutchman was once again relegated to a cameo role for Roberto De Zerbi's debut match last weekend, only being introduced for the dying embers of that 1-0 loss to Sunderland at the Stadium of Light.

However, Lucas Bergvall was found wanting in the most advanced midfield position, so De Zerbi may very well give Simons a shot from the off as part of a double attacking change.

The Italian's decision to start with three recognised strikers in Randal Kolo Muani, Richarlison and Dominic Solanke did not pay dividends last time out, and the former could also be demoted in favour of Mathys Tel.

Pape Sarr and Joao Palhinha are both vying for more minutes in the middle, but De Zerbi may wish to stick with the Archie Gray-Conor Gallagher double pivot for the time being, as he will be forced into one major defensive alteration.

Cristian Romero's tears told the story of Spurs' season at the Stadium of Light, where the Argentina international suffered a partial MCL tear that will sideline him for the rest of the campaign.

Palhinha, Radu Dragusin and Kevin Danso are all alternatives to Romero, but the latter is the most likely candidate to step in, while Antonin Kinsky ought to continue in goal while Guglielmo Vicario enters the final stages of hernia recovery.

Tottenham Hotspur possible starting lineup:

Kinsky; Porro, Danso, Van de Ven, Udogie; Gray, Gallagher; Tel, Simons, Richarlison; Solanke

The Roberto De Zerbi derby kicks off at 5.30pm on Saturday evening, when Tottenham Hotspur and Brighton & Hove Albion lock horns in gameweek 33 of the 2025-26 Premier League season.

The Lilywhites' new era began in familiar fashion with a 1-0 loss to Sunderland last weekend, while the Seagulls continued on their upward trajectory with a 2-0 triumph at Burnley.

Match preview

Ironically plunged into a deeper sense of darkness at the Stadium of Light, Tottenham's De Zerbi days could hardly have started any worse; one defeat, no goals, and one more serious injury to contend with.

On an afternoon where Spurs lost captain Cristian Romero to a season-ending knee problem, the Lilywhites were condemned to a harrowing 16th loss of the Premier League campaign, as Nordi Mukiele's deflected effort sparked Sunderland pandemonium.

Marginal improvements may have been visible in Spurs' play, but marginal improvements do not put points on the board for the relegation-battling hosts, who remain two points below the dreaded dotted line in the Premier League table with a mere six games left on the calendar.

Winless in 14 Premier League matches since 2026 rolled around, Tottenham have now endured the fourth-longest winless run in the competition at the start of a single calendar year - the three sides to endure longer such streaks were unsurprisingly all demoted come the end of the season.

The Lilywhites did at least stun Atletico Madrid 3-2 on their own turf not so long ago - even if that Champions League triumph was inconsequential - but with a paltry 10 home points on the board in the 2025-26 Premier League, Tottenham's home record is the worst of its kind.

Brighton have picked up just one fewer point in their last three games, than Spurs have collected at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium all season, as the soaring Seagulls have collected nine points from the last nine on offer in the top flight.

Sunderland, Liverpool and most recently Burnley have succumbed to the visitors' superiority in recent weeks, and an unlikely source in Mats Wieffer was at the double when the South Coast side strode to a 2-0 victory at Turf Moor last weekend.

Also taking down Brentford and Nottingham Forest over the past couple of months - while only succumbing to defeat against leaders Arsenal - Brighton have collected 15 points from their last six Premier League showdowns, the best record of any team in that time.

Just two points adrift of Chelsea in sixth spot, the ninth-placed Seagulls now seek a historic club first - four successive Premier League away victories - while each of their last three successes on the road have also arrived with a clean sheet.

Speaking of travel triumphs, Brighton memorably demolished Tottenham 4-1 in the capital during the final gameweek of 2024-25, before extending their unbeaten run against Spurs to three matches in September's 2-2 stalemate.

Tottenham Hotspur Premier League form:

Tottenham Hotspur form (all competitions):

Brighton & Hove Albion Premier League form:

Team News

While Tottenham have not yet come out with an official statement on Romero, it has been well-reported that the centre-back will sit out the rest of the campaign with a partial MCL tear, albeit one that should not derail his World Cup chances.

For now, Romero joins fellow knee victims Dejan Kulusevski, Wilson Odobert and James Maddison in the treatment room, as well as Mohammed Kudus (thigh), Ben Davies (ankle), Rodrigo Bentancur (thigh) and Guglielmo Vicario (hernia), but the latter may have a slim chance of returning for the weekend.

Kevin Danso is primed and ready to fill the Romero void for the rest of the season, while Mathys Tel and Xavi Simons should stick their hands up for starts after Spurs' ineffective attacking display at the Stadium of Light.

De Zerbi and Hurzeler can sympathise when it comes to the absence of an integral defender, as Brighton skipper Lewis Dunk must serve the second of a two-game ban for accumulating 10 yellow cards this weekend.

Adam Webster (knee) and Stefanos Tzimas (knee) are keeping Dunk company on the sidelines, but Hurzeler could welcome James Milner back from a "minor, minor injury" that the 40-year-old sustained in training before the Burnley success.

However, the Seagulls are still blessed with the talents of another veteran midfielder in Pascal Gross, who has created 24 chances since rejoining Brighton in January - the fourth-most in the division over that time period.

Tottenham Hotspur possible starting lineup:

Kinsky; Porro, Danso, Van de Ven, Udogie; Gray, Gallagher; Tel, Simons, Richarlison; Solanke

Brighton & Hove Albion possible starting lineup:

Verbruggen; Wieffer, Van Hecke, Boscagli, Kadioglu; Ayari, Gross; Gomez, Hinshelwood, Minteh; Welbeck

We say: Tottenham Hotspur 1-2 Brighton & Hove Albion

Spurs may have had more bark about them in De Zerbi's debut, but there is still an alarming lack of bite from the Europa League holders, who are now facing the most in-form team in the Premier League over the last six games.

Coupled with Tottenham's atrocious home form and Brighton's exceptional displays on the road of late, the Seagulls have our backing to haunt former coach De Zerbi and push Tottenham further towards the trapdoor.

Cristian Romero may have already played his final game for Tottenham Hotspur, but there is still hope for the injured defender to represent Argentina at the 2026 World Cup, according to his national team assistant coach.

The 27-year-old was involved in a nasty collision with Spurs goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky in last weekend’s 1-0 Premier League defeat against Sunderland at the Stadium of Light.

After lengthy on-field treatment, Romero climbed to his feet and left the pitch in tears midway through the second half, sparking serious concerns over the severity of his injury.

Romero, who was later spotted walking through London with his right knee heavily bandaged in a social media post, is now expected to miss around eight weeks with a high-grade partial tear of his medial cruciate ligament, ruling his out for the rest of the season.

This major injury blow has led to suggestions that the defender may have appeared in a Tottenham shirt for the last time, as the Lilywhites captain continues to be strongly linked with a summer exit regardless of the club’s Premier League status for next season.

While a shock relegation to the Championship would almost certainly trigger a summer exodus of first-team stars like Romero, it is understood that the defender may look to leave even if Tottenham avoid the drop.

Romero given fresh World Cup hope by Argentina assistant

Romero is now facing a race to be fit in time for this summer's World Cup with reigning champions Argentina, who will aim to defend their crown at the newly-expanded tournament held in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

Initial reports raised concerns over Romero’s international hopes, but a fresh update from Argentina assistant coach Robert Ayala suggests the defender will meet his recovery deadline.

Speaking on Fox Sports, as quoted by Mundo Albieceleste, Ayala said: "We think Cristian Romero will be able to make it just in time for the World Cup, maybe without as much match rhythm, since he won’t have the minutes he’s had so far.

“He’ll train and might even arrive in slightly better physical condition. The timeline works out, so in that sense we’re calm.

"Obviously, this doesn’t stop us from continuing to look at other options too.”

Ayala has also confirmed that Romero does not require surgery and is set to be given platelet-rich plasma treatment to help accelerate the healing process.