Tottenham have been handed a blow for this weekend’s clash with Everton after new signing Dominic Solanke was ruled out of contention due to an injury.
The striker, who joined Ange Postecoglou’s side for £65million from Bournemouth this summer, hurt his ankle in the opening league draw against Leicester.
And the Spurs boss said that the issue has since “flared up”. Speaking ahead of Saturday’s league fixture with the Toffees, he said: “Dom picked up a knock in the last game so he got through the game but it flared up the day after, so he'll miss tomorrow.”
He added: “It's an ankle injury, he copped it really early on, someone went across his ankle. It just depends on his recovery [when he returns], obviously we've got the international break. but it's not serious.”
Richarlison, who signed for Spurs last summer from Everton in a deal worth £60million, is said to be “ready to go” as Solanke’s replacement as he meets his former club.
Solanke is not the only injury headache for Postecoglou. Rodrigo Bentancur, who started the game against Leicester but was forced off with 12 minutes of regular time due to a head injury, is unavailable due to concussion protocols.
Postecoglou said: “We respect concussion protocols and [with] any head injury we'll always be a little more conservative. The good news is he's bounced back really well, done all the tests, but we'll take our time with Rodrigo before putting him back out there.”
One player who could start in Bentancur’s place is Yves Bissouma, who was suspended by Tottenham after he was filmed inhaling laughing gas on the eve of the new season. While the Malian midfielder is available for selection, his coach suggested the damage done by the video is not yet fully repaired.
“Biss is available but we've got some options there and the whole idea of bulking up the squad in pre-season was for these kinds of scenarios,” Postecoglou said. “He's available for selection but the bridge building continues.”