The latest Tottenham Hotspur team news and injury updates ahead of the north London derby.
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Tottenham Hotspur return to Premier League action on Sunday when they face fierce rivals Arsenal in the latest edition of the north London derby – but they come into a crucial match in the teeth of an injury crisis.
As many as 12 Spurs players could be unavailable this weekend, including strikers Randal Kolo Muani and Dominic Solanke, winger Mohammed Kudus and midfielders Lucas Bergvall and Pape Matar Sarr, who picked up an injury while on international duty for Senegal.
With so many players out or doubtful for the game at the Emirates, we’ve brought together all of the latest Spurs team news and injury updates ahead of Thomas Frank’s pre-match press conference, and offered up our prediction for Sunday’s starting line-up.
Updates on Randal Kolo Muani, Dominic Solanke & Mohammed Kudus ahead of Arsenal showdown
Spurs seem set to be without several key attacking players this weekend, including strikers Kolo Muani and Solanke – with the former suffering a fractured lower jaw and the latter still unavailable following ankle surgery.
No official timeline has been placed on either player’s return but Kolo Muani was forced to withdraw from France’s squad and his participation is very much in doubt. A fractured jaw would normally put him out for around four more weeks, but he has since been training with a special protective face mask. It is unclear whether that will be sufficient for him to play. The Evening Standard, meanwhile, reports that Solanke remains out for the Arsenal match with uncertainty over when he will be back in training.
Kudus was another player who skipped international duty over the past fortnight after he picked up a “knock” – in Frank’s words – which kept him out of Spurs’ last two games. The Ghanaian winger is expected to be fit to face Arsenal, however, with Frank adding that he was “very confident” the summer signing would be available.
Other attacking players out for Sunday’s game include long-term absentees James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski (both ACL) although the Swede is back on grass and is inching towards a long-awaited comeback which is likely to happen in December.
Pape Matar Sarr and Lucas Bergvall among fresh doubts for Spurs
The international break didn’t provide much good news for Spurs, with Sarr limping off during a friendly against Brazil which happened to take place at the Emirates – the midfielder remained in London as a result and left his international squad to recover.
Spurs have yet to offer an update on Sarr’s situation but Senegal manager Pape Thiaw said that the 23-year-old was taken off purely as a “precaution” and added that “I don’t think it’s a big deal.” As it stands, Sarr is expected to be ready to face Arsenal.
The same may not apply to Bergvall, who missed Sweden’s final World Cup qualifiers after failing to clear concussion protocol. It remains unclear whether he will be available this weekend. Archie Gray (calf) and Yves Bissouma (ankle) are not expected to be involved.
In defence, Cristian Romero is believed to be fully fit, while both Kota Takai and Ben Davies (both thigh) and Radu Dragusin (ACL) are getting closer to their returns – Dragusin played 45 minutes of a behind-closed-doors friendly against Leyton Orient during the break and could make the bench. None of the trio are liable to start, however, if they are ready for the matchday squad.