The FIFA international break has come and gone. Still, with the World Cup Qualifying fixtures continuing next month, the issue between the Premier League clubs and its South American players will resurface next month.
Before the international window occurred this month, the Premier League released a statement on clubs withholding the players that the UK has on its red list. Anyone returning from these countries would be subject to quarantine, meaning clubs would lose players for more than one fixture.
Tottenham Hotspur had three vital players leave this month in Giovani Lo Celso, Cristian Romero, and Davinson Sánchez. Hence, manager Nuno Espírito Santo stated that these rules of players defying club mandates and what will transpire in October confuses the Portuguese tactician.
He stated these concerns at his press conference, where the Standard relaid his comments.
“It’s confusing for everybody,” Nuno said. “Because we don’t have much news from the governing bodies on what we should do, what to expect in the next international break.”
“This is the main concern for us, that things can be solved for the future. But it’s really difficult to understand. Every time that an international break comes around, it’s always a concern for us because you cannot control [the situations].
Romero, Lo Celso, and Sánchez missed Tottenham’s loss to Crystal Palace, and it will be interesting to see whether they’ll be match fit for their match against Chelsea.