17 players could miss Sunderland vs Tottenham as Roberto De Zerbi drops injury update

A number of players could be missing for Roberto De Zerbi's first game in charge of Tottenham as the Italian prepares to deal with a long list of absentees

Roberto De Zerbi could be without 10 players for his first game as the new Tottenham head coach. Spurs travel to Sunderland on Sunday looking to record their first win in 2026 and boost their Premier League survival hopes.

The north London club dropped into the bottom three on Friday following West Ham's win against Wolves and are facing a fight to avoid falling into the second tier for the first time since 1977. They sit in 18th, two points behind the Hammers and 16th-place Nottingham Forest.

With seven matches to go, De Zerbi, 46, has a huge task on his hands to first keep Spurs in the top flight following his appointment as the club's new head coach earlier this month. The Italian was appointed on a lucrative five-year contract following Igor Tudor's dismissal.

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But De Zerbi could be missing TEN first-team players for his side's trip to the Stadium of Light. Wilson Odobert, Dejan Kulusevski, James Maddison and Mohammed Kudus are long-term absentees and remain out.

Ben Davies is expected to be back in late-April but won't return for Sunderland. Rodrigo Bentancur and Guglielmo Vicario are pushing to be fit for the home game against Brighton next week, while Yves Bissouma, Mathys Tel and Pape Matar Sarr are facing a race against time to feature to take on Sunderland.

Speaking in his pre-match press conference, De Zerbi first issued an update on Kudus, who has suffered a setback in his recovery from a long-term quadricep injury.

"I started not with too big luck, but yes, Kudus was in my head a crucial player, especially for the position, but we have to look forward anyway," De Zerbi said.

De Zerbi then talked about Vicario, who underwent hernia surgery following the 3-0 defeat to Nottingham Forest last month, and Bentancur as he prepares to return from a thigh issue.

"Vicario is not ready for this game," De Zerbi added. "I hope he comes back earlier next week, but I don't know yet. Bentancur is working with us, but not completely, but we are enough to fight, to play and to make points."

Sunderland, meanwhile, could have SEVEN players out. Regis Le Bris confirmed that Jocelin Ta Bi, Romaine Mundle, Bertrand Traore and Simon Moore are the confirmed absentees, while Robin Roefs, Dan Ballard and Nilson Angulo are facing a race against time to be fit to face Tottenham.