Ange Postecoglou's recent desire to hand his Tottenham players short breaks has continued this week ahead of their big Europa League match at AZ Alkmaar.
Following almost three months of the same small group of Spurs players taking to the pitch every three days due to a huge injury crisis, Postecoglou has looked to hand out little double days off in the weeks since due to the past three fixtures having six, seven or eight days between them and allowing for plenty of training days.
In the previous two weeks, the Australian gave his squad the Monday and Tuesday off ahead of the games against Ipswich Town and Manchester United. Now after Wednesday night's 1-0 defeat to Manchester City and with no FA Cup match this weekend, football.london understands that Postecoglou has given the Tottenham players Sunday and Monday off to recharge their batteries.
Only those players continuing their rehabilitation from recent injuries will return to Hotspur Way on Monday with the rest of the group coming back to the Enfield training complex on Tuesday to prepare for a big round of 16 first leg clash in Alkmaar. Spurs' season now hinges on their progress in the Europa League and they will be trying to take charge of the tie during their time in the Netherlands, with the match taking place at the AFAS Stadion on Thursday night.
Some Tottenham players will have taken the opportunity to get a couple of days away from the UK, while others will simply grab the chance to spend some time with their family at home before a period over the next couple of weeks that brings four matches in 11 days.
The two legs against AZ take place amid Premier League Sunday fixtures against Bournemouth and Fulham, the former visiting the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and the latter match taking place at Craven Cottage.
Of those heading abroad for a short break, Yves Bissouma has decided to head off to colder climes, with his Instagram Story post on Sunday showing him enjoying a meal at a snow-covered ski resort in Courchevel, which is located in the French Alps. The midfielder has hopefully just been enjoying the snow and watching those on the slopes as Tottenham cannot afford the risk of any further injuries ahead of this run of crunch matches.
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