Thomas Frank has confirmed that two more Tottenham Hotspur stars had picked up injuries ahead of the Carabao Cup loss to Newcastle, taking the total to 12, although two could be back for Saturday’s London derby against Chelsea.
Thomas Frank’s men crashed out of the League Cup at the last-16 stage as goals from Fabian Schar and Nicolas Woltemade condemned them to defeat at St James’ Park, in a game where the Spurs boss was forced to shuffle his pack again.
It emerged before Wednesday’s clash that midfielder Archie Gray, who was expected to start on Tyneside, has picked up a calf issue to leave Frank scrambling for numbers against the Magpies.
That means that Tottenham have now double-digit injury absentees, with the situation reminiscent of the problems under Ange Postecoglou midway through last season.
However, Gray was not the only player to pull up lame before the Newcastle clash, with Wilson Odobert also surprisingly missing against Eddie Howe’s men.
Frank has now revealed that the France Under-21 international picked up a side strain in the lead-up to the game, but indicated that he could be back as early as Saturday’s clash with Chelsea.
When asked about Odobert, the Tottenham boss said after the 2-0 defeat to Newcastle: “Odobert had a side, strain, unfortunately, that kept him out for this game. Also, we need to assess him but it could look positive for Chelsea.”
Frank also revealed that Guglielmo Vicario missed the Newcastle clash through injury, but the Spurs number one should be back in time for Chelsea.
That means Vicario and Odobert join Cristian Romero, James Maddison, Dejan Kulusevski, Ben Davies, Kota Takai, Dominic Solanke, Radu Dragusin, Destiny Udogie, Archie Gray, and Yves Bissouma on the injury list.
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Odobert best of a bad bunch on the left
The left-wing role has been a major issue for Thomas Frank, with none of Brennan Johnson, Xavi Simons or Mathys Tel making anything of an impression there.
In fact, Odobert has looked the most comfortable in the position, hence Frank’s decision to often give him the nod for that role.
The France Under-21 international has the ability to go outside and inside, something the other options struggle with, and he at least gives a better balance to the team – even if the end product is far from stellar.
If Odobert is available to face Chelsea, it will be interesting to see which way Frank goes with his team selection.
Mohammed Kudus started centrally in more of a No.10 role in the 3-0 win at Everton last weekend, with Johnson on the right and Simons out on the left.
The Dutch playmaker could find himself back on the bench, if Frank opts for the better balance to the side and recalls Odobert – although that would be a huge call against a Blues side who traditionally do incredibly well in this match-up.
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