Tottenham Hotspur have taken advantage of a nine day layoff in between games to jet off to Marabella, Spain. This is no holiday, however, but instead a chance for everyone to get more fit. And Spurs’ next match comes on Monday night, a home clash against newly promoted Coventry City. It remains to be seen how much shorter Tottenham’s injured list becomes for this match, if it shortens at all, but nevertheless let’s get you updated on Spurs’ walking wounded: Pedro Porro, Dejan Kulusevski, Mykhailo Mudryk and more.
Tottenham Hotspur vs Coventry City
Kickoff: Mon. Oct. 19, 8pm
Venue: Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, UK
Premier League Standings, Form: Tottenham Hotspur 19th, 3 pts, LDDLD Coventry City 14th, 6 pts, LLLWW
Result Probability, According to Google: Tottenham Hotspur win 66% Draw 19% Coventry City win 15%
First off, let’s go over who definitely won’t be there. Rodrigo Bentancur is suspended for this match, and the next two, for headbutting Luke Shaw on Saturday, during the matchup of two big money clubs going nowhere fast.
Moving on to Porro, he suffered a hamstring injury right before the international window, and he pulled out of national team duty, with Spain, for that period.
His return is close- it will come either in this match or against Chelsea on October 24.
More likely the latter. Speaking of Chelsea, Spurs’ surprise summer signing from Stamford Bridge is nearing a return to full fitness, and the current recovery timeline would have him maybe in line to return for that match.
However, he is a loanee and Chelsea is his parent club, so thus he’s ineligible to feature in that one. His return from the ankle injury that he recently suffered in training recently will likely come on Halloween instead.
Meanwhile Xavi Simons and Wilson Odobert remain sidelined as longer term injury absentees.
And then finally, with Kulusevski, he recently featured in his first game of any form, in 17 months, and yes, that’s more than 500 days.
Kulusevski was took part in an internal behind-closed-doors friendly that featured both youth system and senior team players. He’s also been slowly/gradually returning to training.
Manager Roberto de Zerbi said, ahead of the Man United clash, that he would travel to that match, but he still was not named to the matchday squad.
That is bound to happen soon, because we’re so close.
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network, Ratings and RG. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes and the Washington Post.