Tottenham Hotspur were not just injury-ravaged last season, they were the most injury-riddled club of all last term. You can make the argument that they held this unwanted position during the 2024-25 season as well. So with that in mind, health and fitness are obviously of the utmost importance this summer. With the preseason fixtures set to commence, let’s do an injury fitness check, and today we’ll focus on Xavi Simons, Wilson Odobert and Dejan Kulusevski.
Tottenham Hotspur Preseason Schedule
July 22 MK Dons (behind closed doors)
July 26 Auckland FC (Auckland)
July 29 Sydney FC (Sydney)
August 1 Chelsea (Sydney)
August 8 Getafe (behind closed doors)
August 15 Hoffenheim (H)
August 16 Hoffenheim (behind closed doors)
Preseason Opener FYIs
Tottenham Hotspur vs Milton Keynes Dons
Preview Material: Team News Injury Updates
Watch: No, as it’s behind closed doors
When: Wed. July 22
Xavi is back at Hotspur Way 💪
Check out an exclusive gallery of rehab photos in the official Spurs app!
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) July 17, 2026
Tottenham Injury Updates
Xavi Simons
Flashback to the club statement on April 27:
“We can confirm that Xavi has ruptured the Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) in his right knee. Xavi will undergo surgery in the coming weeks and, following that, will then begin his rehabilitation with our medical team.”
While he’s been photographed and video taped doing well with his rehab at the club, he is a long ways off from returning to action.
Xavi on the comeback trail 💪 pic.twitter.com/aACmIulW7l
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) July 17, 2026
The surgery was successful, back on May 5, and he is progressing along on the comeback trail. When he returns though, remains to be seen.
Wilson Odobert
Flashing back to the club statement on Feb. 12:
“We can confirm that Wilson Odobert has sustained a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee… Wilson will see a specialist next week before undergoing surgery, and will then commence his rehabilitation with our medical staff.”
Not a whole lot of new information is really out there right now, so it’s hard to say when he’ll be back. Like Simons, we don’t think it’ll be by opening day, however.
Dejan Kulusevski
A fractured patella has kept him from playing football for more than a year-and-a-half now. The good news is he will recover. The bad news is that it could still awhile before he features again.
Kulusevski’s national team doctor in Sweden, Jonas Werner, was quoted in football.london on May 28, regarding the injured winger:
He’s done everything he can to get ready, but when it came to deciding [the squad], he wasn’t. The reason is that he hasn’t played football in a year, but even the medical assessments made this spring [indicated] that he wouldn’t be ready. Cartilage injuries are troublesome. They are difficult to treat. Cartilage has no blood supply and no nerves. It doesn’t heal in the usual way. Plus, he has it in a place that gets a lot of stress. The injury simply hasn’t healed enough to handle that stress.
Maybe Deki can be ready for opening day? It’s very hard to say, and TBD at this point.
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.