Tottenham Hotspur head coach Ange Postecoglou is dealing with an injury crisis, with a number of central defenders set to miss their next match against Wolverhampton Wanderers.
First-choice pairing Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven are long-term absentees, both were injured in their first match back from injury earlier this month against Chelsea and have missed Spurs' last four matches in all competitions.
Ben Davies has suffered a setback and is out for another couple of weeks, while Radu Dragusin was forced off in the loss at Nottingham Forest.
"It's a bit early to tell, he tweaked his ankle and felt like he couldn't continue, so we'll have to wait and see. We'll wait until he gets in (for training) today," Postecoglou said when asked about Dragusin in his pre-match press conference.
"[We've] not [got] many. We are in a tough spot. We have been for a while," Postecoglou added on his defensive options.
"We have been kind of getting through it for quite a while now and keeping our fingers crossed we don't get any more issues.
"It is the nature of football and the fixture scheduling we have had, which means we have always been on a fine line of trying to get through. It is another test for us, but it is what it is. Whatever we need to deal with, we will deal with and be ready for Sunday."
See: Latest Premier League injuries
Who will Spurs play at centre-back?
Spurs' 18-year-old versatile midfielder Archie Gray has been filling in at centre-back, starting the past five matches across all competitions there.
Dragusin has been partnering him but if he is out, then 19-year-old Alfie Dorrington may make a full Premier League debut. He has made one appearance in the competitions but was part of Spurs' Premier League 2 (PL2) winning team of 2023/24.
Midfielder Yves Bissouma ended the match against Forest at centre-back and could be a candidate to start there, as Postecoglou was asked whether it will be happen.
"I don’t know. I mean Yves has never played there so I am not sure why I would put him there," Postecoglou said.
"I had to put him there last night because I had no one else, but we’ll see. We’ll see what happens."
Spurs' other absentees
Spurs will also be without full-back Djed Spence v Wolves. He is suspended for one match after receiving two yellow cards against Forest.
First-choice goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario is expected to be out until February while Wilson Odobert, Richarlison and Mikey Moore are also out.
How much is Spurs' injury crisis affecting them?
Spurs' lack of central defenders have been telling. Since losing Romero and Van de Ven against Chelsea, Postecoglou's side have conceded in all but one match that they've been unavailable in since.
And when Romero was taken off in the 15th minute against Chelsea, Spurs were leading 2-1 but proceeded to concede three more times and eventually lost 4-3.
Spurs' results since Romero and Van de Ven's injuries
Date Match Competition 08/12/2024 Spurs 3-4 Chelsea Premier League 12/12/2024 Rangers 1-1 Spurs Europa League 15/12/2024 Southampton 0-5 Spurs Premier League 19/12/2024 Spurs 4-3 Man Utd EFL Cup 22/12/2024 Spurs 3-6 Liverpool Premier League 26/12/2024 Forest 1-0 Spurs Premier League
Spurs' current points tally of 23 from their first 18 games is their worst in 16 seasons.
And even if they win their next match against Wolves, this will be their lowest points tally at the midway point of a Premier League season (19 games) since 2008/09 when they had won 20 points.
Will Spurs sign January reinforcements?
Postecoglou previously said that the club will strengthen their squad in the January transfer window, a comment he reiterated in his press conference on Friday.
"I still think you can be disciplined. It will depend where we’re at when the window opens and we're getting close to that now, so we've got a clearer picture of where we're at," Postecoglou added.
"It's not just about just bringing anybody in. There's certainly a need to reinforce if we can.
"Everyone knows January's not an easy time to do that. But the club's working hard behind the scenes to see what we can do to help players we've got at the moment who are giving everything in every game and dipping into every bit of energy they have to try to get us through.
"Not in years but I think in the context of where we're at at the moment I think it is an important one. I think if we add what we need to add and it fits the bill in what we're trying to do… Our league position is not great but it’s super tight and we’re not that far off. Like I say, we're in the semi-final of the Carabao Cup and still in great position in Europe and there's the FA Cup.
"There's still everything to play for for us this year to make it a season where we can have success. But we need some help, the players need some help more importantly, and the club is working really hard to try make that happen."
Spurs' next five PL fixtures