Harry Kane was not involved in Tottenham Hotspur's 1-0 win against Manchester City on Sunday afternoon.
The Athletic understands that Kane was not deemed fit enough for the feature and did not travel with the team to the fixture.
For City, meanwhile, Jack Grealish was handed his first start for the club after signing for the defending Premier League champions for a British record fee of £100 million.
Asked about Kane's fitness after the win, Tottenham head coach Nuno Espirito Santo said: "Harry worked this morning, he is preparing himself and when he is ready he will join the group and will help the team.
"Like Harry, Brian (Gil), Christian Romero, they join us later so we thought it was very important for Christian and Brian to feel the atmosphere here at the stadium today and the process of being in the hotel and with the team .."
Nuno said: "Harry Kane is one of the best players in the world, honestly. We're so lucky to have him. He has to be ready to help the team."
Kane has been at the center of a long-running transfer saga between the two clubs, with The Athletic reporting the 28-year-old's desire to leave Tottenham several months ago.
There was confusion over Kane's return to Tottenham's pre-season after joining the European Championship, with the striker denying he had refused training. Kane did a five-day quarantine at The Lodge before returning to training.
On Friday, however, Nuno indicated that Kane could play for the club in Sunday's match, even though he is not playing in any pre-season fixtures. Nuno revealed that he will decide on Kane's participation after training on Saturday.
Kane is wanted by City and eager to leave north London, but Tottenham are determined not to sell to another Premier League club.
Even without Kane, Tottenham were able to beat City as Son Heung-min scored the winning goal in the 55th minute of a pulsating match.