Serge Aurier starts for Tottenham against Newcastle just 48 hours after death of brother Christophe

Serge Aurier has been named in Tottenham‘s starting XI for their trip to Newcastle United – just two days after his brother was killed in a shooting in France.

Christophe Aurier, 26, was shot outside a nightclub in Toulouse at 5am on Monday morning before being pronounced dead in hospital.

A suspect in the killing has reportedly handed himself into police, according to French outlet L’Equipe, who claimed he ‘confessed to having killed the victim’.

Serge Aurier was named in Tottenham’s starting line up to face Newcastle on Wednesday

It comes two days after his brother Christopher, 26, was killed after a shooting in Toulouse

There had been doubts over whether Aurier would continue to feature for Tottenham for the remainder of the Premier League restart during a traumatic time for himself and his family, but the right-back has been picked in Jose Mourinho’s team to play at St James’ Park on Wednesday evening.

Former Tottenham midfielder Jermaine Jenas said while Aurier has had his critics since joining the club, there can be no questions about his character and believes his team-mates will give him all the support he needs and act as his ‘family’.   

‘From a footballing perspective, myself and other pundits have been quite critical of Serge Aurier’s performances in recent weeks or since he arrived at Tottenham,’ he told BT Sport. 

Christopher is understood to have been pronounced dead at University Hospital in Toulouse

Pictured: Kin’s nightclub in the Thibaud area of Toulouse, where Christopher Aurier was reportedly shot

‘But the one thing you can’t question in this scenario is his character. I don’t know personally how I would react in that scenario.  

‘I would find it difficult to be focused on football right now, but as we know, that pitch is some form of escapism from your life and feelings at times, and his team-mates will be like his family right now. 

‘You’ve got to give him a lot credit for putting himself out there in such a difficult time for him.’

Police had been called to the scene in Toulouse in the early hours on Monday after residents found a man lying on the ground with a gunshot wound to his stomach outside Kin’s nightclub. 

Jermaine Jenas says Aurier deserves immense credit for deciding to play on after the tragedy

It is claimed by another French outlet, La Depeche, that the motive behind the incident may have been to do with a ‘love dispute’.

Christopher was also a footballer, in the French fifth division with Toulouse Rodeo. He had a trial with Championship side Brentford back in 2011 but was not signed.

Like Serge, he came through the ranks at RC Lens but did not make the breakthrough to the highest level. 

Christopher was ‘known to police for small crimes’, local media sources have said. In 2017, he was arrested on suspicion of attacking a prostitute in Lille in northern France. 

There had been serious doubts whether Aurier would be in the right frame of mind to play

In 2017, police in Lille arrested him after a 20-year-old local sex worker claimed two men had stolen her phone and credit card in December of the previous year.

The two men were reported to have threatened the woman in her flat with a fake handgun and tear-gassed her when she refused to hand over money. 

A Tottenham statement published earlier this week read: ‘The Club is deeply saddened to confirm media reports that Serge Aurier’s brother passed away in the early hours of this morning.

‘Everybody at the Club sends their sincerest condolences to Serge and his family. Our thoughts are with them all.’