For Tottenham Hotspur and their overall squad fitness situation, it currently feels like two steps forward, and then immediately, two steps back. As soon as the Spurs injury list got shorter, Pedro Porro and Destiny Udogie were quickly added to it. Dejan Kulusevski was nearing a very long-awaited return, but then he suffered a setback.
That has been the pattern, at White Hart Lane, over the past couple seasons or so.
EFL Cup Third Round FYIs
Tottenham Hotspur at Liverpool FC
Kickoff: Tue Sept. 15, 8pm
Venue: Anfield, Liverpool, UK
Preview Material: Team News Predicted XIs
Team News for Both Sides
Both Udogie and Porro missed out on the goalless draw with Everton yesterday, with manager Roberto de Zerbi saying the day before:
“Pedro Porro felt a small muscular problem, we have to see tomorrow if he’s available or not but in this moment I don’t want to take any risks. The same [with] Udogie.”
Consider both defenders doubts for the cup clash at Liverpool on Tuesday night.
As for Kulusevski, well, he’s been out for close to 500 days, due to a serious knee injury. And his return will still be awhile yet, as he’s not in training with the rest of the squad at this time.
De Zerbi offered the following update on Friday:
“Kulusevski is not working with us in the last week. No big problem. The normal problem when one player is out of long time!”
And then finally, Mykhailo Mudryk is (with apologies to Wycleaf Jean) gone till November, with an ankle injury, as we learned last week.
De Zerbi spoke about it on Friday:
“It was a stupid injury to Mudryk, and we hope he comes back as soon as possible. Playing without tackle, without different movement, he felt pain in the ankle, and then after two days, he made the medical check.
“We already knew it could be difficult to come back [immediately] as a normal player.”
Xavi Simons and Wilson Odobert remain sidelined as longer-term injury absentees.
Shifting gears to Liverpool, there are no changes to the team news at this time.
Bradley Barcola is fit again, while Joe Gomez, Fede Chiesa, Giovanni Leoni, Conor Bradley and Hugo Ekitike remain sidelined.
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.