Udinese boss Andrea Sottil insists Destiny Udogie missed defeat to AC Milan due to injury.
The left-back is the subject of transfer talks with Tottenham.
But Sottil said afterwards: “Udogie has a muscle problem, so he was not called up because he has been training separately from the team,.
“We decided not to make him come here.
"The club is in charge of transfers, so he could either stay here [for the rest of the season] or leave."