Mateus Fernandes is a notable absentee from Tottenham Hotspur's 25-man squad to face Sydney FC in a pre-season friendly at the Allianz Stadium.
The Portuguese midfielder joined Spurs from West Ham in an £85million deal earlier this summer as Roberto De Zerbi's midfield underwent a major overhaul alongside the £100m capture of Sandro Tonali from Newcastle United.
Fernandes had impressed in Tottenham's two opening friendlies against MK Dons and Auckland, including scoring a sublime volley from distance against Paul Warne's League One Dons.
However, prior to Tottenham's outing against Sydney FC in Australia, social media was awash with rumours Fernandes had suffered a long-term injury.
Recent training footage posted by Spurs' official account showed Fernandes on the sidelines and not participating in training, while some theorists have suggested the Sporting CP academy graduate has suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury.
Despite the frenzy amongst some Tottenham supporters, football.london's Alasdair Gold has set the record straight on Fernandes, insisting the midfielder is not injured and has only been rested as a precaution.
Gold stated: "The midfielder is not injured.
"Instead it is because head coach Roberto De Zerbi has been pushing the players hard in training, especially those who returned earlier to pre-season, and various players' time in sessions and matches is being monitored and managed based on a variety of factors such as fatigue, little niggles, illness or even jet lag."
Fernandes' asbence has presented Lucas Bergvall with an opportunity in midfield, despite speculation linking the Sweden international with a move away from the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Bergvall features alongside the likes of Conor Gallagher, Richarlison, Archie Gray, Mathys Tel, Ben Davies and Manor Solomon, while summer recruit Martin Dubravka starts between the sticks ahead of Antonin Kinsky for the Sydney FC fixture.
Central defenders Micky van de Ven and Jan Paul van Hecke remain absent from the squad.
