Thomas Frank has been handed three very different Tottenham injury boosts ahead of a busy few weeks before the October international break. Spurs have started the 2025/26 season in great form with four wins secured from a possible six.
Their latest outing came on the south coast against Brighton and initially looked set to end in defeat after early goals from Yankuba Minteh and Yasin Ayari. Richarlison pulled one back before half-time and pressure from the visitors told with Mohammed Kudus' cross inadvertently put into his own net by Jan Paul van Hecke.
Summer signing Xavi Simons made a significant impact in the second period in central areas and more performances like that will be needed with James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski unavailable because of long-term issues.
Frank was asked about the latter in a press conference ahead of Tottenham's Carabao Cup third round clash against Doncaster with his comments providing some optimism that he will be back relatively soon.
"Of course Kulusevski is a top player, I always liked him when I saw him from afar," he said. "He is a key player for us, a key player for me. Instead of putting an exact month, I just want him back as soon as possible. The medical guys and Kulusevski are working very hard on that. It’s not tomorrow but hopefully not too far away."
Spurs also have several players missing because of minor issues with Randal Kolo Muani and Ben Davies both set to remain out.
"They will both not be available for selection," Frank revealed. "It's minor injuries, both of them. It's just too short a turnaround unfortunately."
On Kota Takai and Dominic Solanke, he added: "Progressing. Both trained today with the team, so that's good."
The England international has missed Spurs' last four games with an ankle injury that has been plaguing him since pre-season. Takai was diagnosed with plantar fasciitis over the summer, but looks set to soon play his first minutes for the Lilywhites.
Alongside that double boost, Radu Dragusin has also been in team training for the last few weeks after damaging his ACL earlier in the year. Maddison suffered a similar injury against Newcastle United in August with surgery required to fix the issue.
The 28-year-old has been posting regular updates on Instagram of his rehabilitation in the Hotspur Way gym. He recently uploaded a picture of him and Kulusevski on exercise bikes and the latest video has shown him improving mobility.
Maddison has been filmed balancing on on leg while throwing a medicine ball down at the ground and towards a member of staff. The caption of the 20-second clip reads: "Progress [ok hand emoji]."
Despite the progress, it is likely to be a race against team for Maddison to return this season with nine months often the absence period for such knee injuries.