Giovani Lo Celso picks up back issue, will miss Europa League tie against Dinamo Zagreb

Though it seemed like Giovani Lo Celso was getting ready for a return to the pitch for Tottenham Hotspur, the midfielder will have to wait a little longer. He picked up a back injury during training, meaning he will miss Thursday’s Europa League match against Dinamo Zagreb.

uring his pre-match press conference, manager José Mourinho described the back injury as something that happened while Lo Celso was regaining fitness after recovering from a hamstring injury (via the Evening Standard):

Gio is not ready but it’s nothing to do with his previous important injury, from which he’s totally recovered. But with his accumulation of work he’s got a bit of back pain so he’s had to stop what he’s doing. So, not for this match.

Last week, Mourinho said Lo Celso was a week or two away from his return, which may have made him ready in time for Sunday’s North London derby. While Lo Celso is definitely unavailable for Zagreb, Mourinho did not share how long the new back injury would keep him out.

Otherwise, Spurs have a clean bill of health heading into the first leg of the round of 16 Europa League tie against Zagreb.

Lo Celso has been out for Spurs since December 20, when he picked up the hamstring injury in a 2-0 loss to Leicester City. He returned to training at the end of February.