Roberto De Zerbi drops Luca Williams-Barnet hint as Tottenham wonderkid pushes to play

Teenager is considered one of the brightest talents to come out of Spurs’ academy in recent years

Roberto De Zerbi is weighing up using Luca Williams-Barnett to solve Tottenham’s attacking issues, but admitted he does not want to throw the youngster in while results continue to falter.

Williams-Barnett is considered one of the brightest talents to come out of Spurs’ academy in recent years, and made a lasting impression during the club’s pre-season tour this summer.

The 17-year-old was surprisingly not called up as Spurs travelled to Liverpool in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday, instead scoring off the bench for the Under-21s against Dinamo Zagreb in the Premier League International Cup.

De Zerbi was reluctant to use the club’s academy players last season, prioritising experience as he battled to keep Spurs in the Premier League.

Spurs then embarked on a summer spending spree well in excess of £300million, overhauling their squad and leaving few opportunities for the likes of Williams-Barnett and Malachi Hardy.

With De Zerbi’s side winless in the league and still searching for their first top-flight goal this season, the Italian admits he does not want to throw Williams-Barnett in the deep end, with the young winger at a crucial stage of his development.

“Yes, I have a big consideration because he is a good player and he is a potential top player. We have to understand when is the best situation for him and for the team also,” De Zerbi said in his pre-match press conference on Friday.

“It is a different job to manage the young, young player, especially when this young player is a potential top player, because you can’t put them in the bad condition or bad situation, but also you can’t forget of them. I didn’t forget about Luca, like Malachi [Hardy, young defender], but we have to find the right moment.”

Spurs take on Aston Villa on Saturday, who are also yet to win in the league this season, and De Zerbi says he believes his side have the quality to end their scoreless duct.

De Zerbi continued: “We have to accept [the situation] and nothing more. I would work every day, but if we have to stop, we stop.

“Most important is the game of tomorrow. Tough game, but we have the qualities, the players to play well, because if we don't play well, we can't win. Or maybe one time per season, two times per season and stop.