Two key first-team players ruled out of the Manchester City clash in big blow to Tottenham
Tottenham Hotspur faces a major setback ahead of their crucial match against Manchester City this weekend, with two key first-team players confirmed to be unavailable. Manager Ange Postecoglou has given an update on the fitness of central defenders Micky van de Ven and Cristian Romero, who are both sidelined due to injuries. The North London club is coming off consecutive defeats and will be desperate to turn things around against the reigning Premier League champions, who they have managed to defeat recently in the League Cup. While Spurs have been able to beat Manchester City in the past, this clash presents a tougher challenge as they face the added difficulty of missing important players.
Van de Ven, the 23-year-old Dutch centre-back, has been sidelined since late last month after suffering a hamstring injury in the League Cup Round of 16 match against Manchester City. He was forced off the pitch just 14 minutes into the match, and the initial hope was that the injury would not be serious, with expectations that he might return after the international break. However, recent updates suggest that the injury is more severe than initially anticipated. Injury expert Dr. Rajpal Brar has indicated that the recovery timeline for van de Ven is longer than expected, making his absence for the Manchester City clash certain.
Romero, the Argentine defender, also faces an uncertain future for the upcoming game. After picking up a toe injury during the match against Aston Villa, he missed subsequent matches against Galatasaray and Ipswich Town, both of which ended in disappointing defeats for Tottenham. Romero did manage to recover in time to play for Argentina during the international break, but his injury appears to have been aggravated. He was substituted at halftime during Argentina’s defeat to Paraguay, leading to concerns about his fitness for the weekend. While Postecoglou shared his congratulations to Romero on the birth of his daughter, he also confirmed that Romero is still not fully fit and remains a doubt for the Manchester City clash.
In his latest update, Postecoglou spoke candidly about the situation, confirming that while Romero has made progress, he is not yet at 100%, and his participation in the upcoming match is in doubt. On van de Ven, Postecoglou explained that the Dutch defender is still a couple of weeks away from returning to action. While van de Ven has been training on the grass, it will be a few more weeks before he is ready to feature again, with the hope being that he will be available to return by mid-December.
With both van de Ven and Romero unavailable, Tottenham will need to adjust their defensive lineup for the crucial encounter against Manchester City. This setback comes at a challenging time, with the club already dealing with the pressure of recent poor results. Tottenham will need to rely on their remaining defenders and midfielders to step up and compensate for the absence of two of their key players. While the team’s recent history against Manchester City offers some hope, the absence of these two key figures will undoubtedly be a significant blow to their chances of securing a positive result.
In the meantime, Postecoglou and his coaching staff will continue to monitor the situation with both players, hoping that van de Ven can make a full recovery soon and that Romero can regain full fitness in time for future fixtures. However, for the upcoming match against City, Tottenham will have to find a way to compete without these important players in their lineup.
