Romero, Van de Ven & Vicario: Tottenham latest injury news and expected return dates
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Tottenham Hotspur may have just earned one of their most impressive wins in recent memory with a 4-0 thrashing of Manchester City at the Etihad, but with two important home matches coming up this week, a recent spate of injuries remains a serious concern.
AS Roma are the visitors in the Europa League on Thursday while Fulham make the short trip across the capital at the weekend for Spurs’ next Premier League match, and Ange Postecoglou will once again be forced to make do without several key players – and will be left sweating on the fitness of centre-half Cristian Romero.
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Hide AdWe’ve collected all of the latest injury news and updates for Tottenham below, along with the stricken players’ expected return dates when available.
Cristian Romero
The Argentine centre-back missed the big win in Manchester thanks to an ankle injury sustained on international duty – Romero was forced to leave the field early against Peru due to the swelling.
Ahead of Saturday’s win, Postecoglou confirmed that Romero would be unavailable but added that he would “hopefully” be back for the following weeks matches. He remains a significant doubt for both games, especially the European tie against Roma.
Micky van de Ven
Romero’s centre-back partner has missed the last three Premier League matches with a more serious hamstring issue, and won’t be involved this week as a result. He is back in light training but Postecoglou told the media on Friday that he would be out for “a good couple of weeks” and that it was hoped that he would be match fit again by mid-December. That means the Dutchman will likely be unavailable for at least four more games.
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Hide AdGuglielmo Vicario
A major new injury was revealed on Monday evening - first-choice goalkeeper Vicario fractured his ankle during Saturday evening’s match and has had to undergo surgery, as a result of which he will be forced to stay on the sidelines for some time. Vicario was able to play for an hour with the injury on the day, but the Italian said on social media that the successful operation was “unavoidable”. Spurs have not yet placed a timeline on his return, but he will not play again in 2024.
Richarlison
The Brazilian forward has endured an injury-ravaged campaign, and has only been able to start one game all season courtesy of multiple serious injuries – and while some reports had suggested that he could return in December, it now looks likely that he will have to wait longer to contribute, with Postecoglou saying that he would be “back in the New Year”. No more specific date is available, but the Australian head coach suggested that Spurs would take his return to first-team action slowly to avoid further problems.
Wilson Odobert
The former Burnley man hasn’t had an ideal start to life at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium – immediately after coming back from a hamstring injury sustained in September, Odobert suffered a recurrence which has required surgery. The procedure took place on 15 November and he is currently being monitored by the medical team. No return date has yet been set, and he is expected to miss significant time.
Mikey Moore
The young winger has had an impressive impact in his handful of appearances this season and may well feature against Roma if he can recover in time from the illness which kept him out of the game against Manchester City. Apparently he has been “hit pretty badly” by a virus, and while he is “back in the building” he remains a major doubt for this week’s fixtures, with Postecoglou emphasising that the club would “take our time” with his recovery.
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Hide AdRodrigo Bentancur & Will Lankshear
Although not injured, both players will miss time this week – Lankshear is suspended for the Europa League game against Roma having been sent off in the previous fixture against Galatasaray, while Bentancur has served one match of a seven-game ban for the use of a racial slur. The club are appealing the severity of the ban. He will be available for the European match against Roma, however, as the ban only applies to FA competitions.
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