Dominic Solanke is poised to go under the knife for ankle surgery in a desperate attempt to resolve the issue that has plagued the Tottenham striker since the summer. The 28-year-old is yet to feature from the start in a competitive fixture this season following an injury sustained whilst mis-hitting a ball during training sessions. Nevertheless, he seemed to be making progress after rejoining training with his Spurs teammates this month.
This followed an injection administered to the England international's ankle during September's international break, which initially appeared to ease the problem. However, Solanke continued experiencing discomfort in his foot and was forced to halt training activities. Thomas Frank confirmed whilst in Norway ahead of the club's Europa League clash against Bodo/Glimt on Thursday that a decision has been reached for the striker to undergo a minor operation.
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"Dom has got that ankle issue that's been bothering him for a little while. So now we decided to make a minor surgery," he explained.
"It's a small procedure. So that will mean he's not ready for today, of course. And of course, Leeds [this weekend] he's out as well.
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"We will have more news about the timeframe after the international break, but I don't expect it to be long."
Solanke is anticipated to be sidelined for weeks rather than months if everything proceeds smoothly with his minor surgery.
Frank dismissed any notion that recent weeks have been squandered in attempting to sidestep a procedure.
"I think you can look from two ways. That's the easy answer, but it's not that easy," he stated.
"If we knew we could have done the surgery a month ago, we probably would have done it."
"For me, it's always 'it is what it is, we deal from now'. We handled this situation in the way we thought was best because generally, no one wants to undergo surgery, no matter how minor it may be.
Spurs are short on strikers for the match against Bodo/Glimt, with summer signing Randal Kolo Muani's dead leg improving but not sufficiently for the Frenchman to make the trip to Norway, while Mathys Tel was not included in the Champions League squad.
It leaves academy graduate Dane Scarlett as the only natural striker to provide backup for Richarlison.
Cristian Romero has also remained in England, which Frank would only describe as "a precaution" following the centre-back's resilient performance in the 1-1 draw with Wolves in the Premier League on Saturday night.
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