Tottenham boss Thomas Frank will "definitely" be without a star player for this weekend's trip to Leeds United, with the Dane looking to get back to winning ways after a hard-fought draw at Bodo/Glimt in the Champions League.
Tottenham display grit again after rescuing 2-2 draw at Bodo/Glimt
For the third time this season, Spurs were forced to come back from a deficit to salvage any kind of result, with their 2-2 battle in Norway following Tottenham's draw at Brighton by the same scoreline and a dramatic 1-1 at home to Wolves last weekend.
On this occasion, an 89th minute own goal by Jostein Gundersen rescued Spurs from what would have been an embarrassing defeat at the Aspmyra Stadion.
The match marked a return to the venue where Tottenham had triumphed in last season's Europa League semi-finals and booked their place in Bilbao against Man United, which proved crucial to Ange Postecoglou ending their 17-year wait for silverware, but this visit told a very different story.
Bodo/Glimt dominated for extended periods, with Jens Petter Hauge scoring twice shortly after halftime to put the hosts 2-0 ahead.
Micky van de Ven, wearing the captain's armband, pulled one back just minutes after Hauge's second before the dramatic late OG gave Spurs an arguably undeserved point.
Frank's tenure thus far has attracted mixed reviews from the Lilywhites fanbase due to Tottenham's lack of real dominance over lesser sides, and this was certainly on full display in the Arctic Circle.
That being said, you can make a very real case that all the best sides in Europe are capable of getting results despite not playing at their very best.
It is also worth remembering that Tottenham impressed against PSG in the UEFA Super Cup final, battered London rivals West Ham and got the best of Premier League title contenders Man City at the Etihad, so there is reason to believe that Spurs are definitely improving from last season.
Their grit to battle back from losing positions so far is testament to this, and it is perhaps a sign of things to come under Frank as the tactician continues to assess his new squad.
Tottenham have been forced to deal with a plethora of absences for key players too, with James Maddison out for the majority of 2025/2026 after a nightmare pre-season injury, Dejan Kulusevski on the comeback trail and Radu Dragusin still recovering from an ACL problem.
Summer signing Randal Kolo Muani has been absent with a dead leg as well, but while the Frenchman is expected to return imminently, the same cannot be said for £140,000-per-week striker Dominic Solanke.
Dominic Solanke "definitely" set to miss Leeds as Tottenham given timeline
The England international was forced to undergo minor surgery on a niggling ankle problem, and while Frank doesn't expect his lay-off to be long, journalist Tom Barclay has stated that Solanke will "definitely" be unavailable for their trip to Elland Road.
However, Tottenham are hopeful he'll return after the international break.
“So first of all, with Solanke, he’s definitely out of the Leeds game. I think the hope is that he may be back after the international break,” Barclay said on The Tottenham Way podcast.
“We’ll see. And obviously all Spurs fans will listen to that and go, yeah, okay, we’ll believe it when we see it after what we’ve seen so far with Solanke and obviously other injuries last season under Ange.”
His fitness issues have been a real cause for concern, with Solanke missing a total of 22 games through injury since joining Spurs from Bournemouth in the summer of 2024 as Harry Kane's heir.
Richarlison has started almost all of Frank's game in charge as a replacement for Solanke, scoring three goals, but concerns have surrounded the Brazilian as Tottenham's focal point.
Last season, Solanke scored 16 goals and provided eight assists across 45 appearances in all competitions when fit and available — proving integral at times — and Frank needs the England forward back in his fold ahead of crucial matches against Aston Villa, Monaco, Everton, Newcastle and Chelsea right after the October internationals.