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Tottenham Hotspur defender Micky van de Ven has established himself as a key cog in Ange Postecloglou‘s side; however, the North Londoners are set to miss the Dutchman’s services for the upcoming run of games given his latest injury.

The former Wolfsburg centre back suffered an awful injury in the Lilywhites Carabao Cup win against Manchester City, and the 23-year-old could be set for an extended spell on the sidelines.

Van de Ven suffers serious hamstring injury

Injury expert, Dr Rajpal Brar, insists that the Dutch defender has suffered from a higher Grade 2 or potentially a Grade 3 hamstring tear, and he suggests that he would continue to serve the sidelines when Ange Postecoglou’s side return from international break and lineup against Manchester City at the weekend.

The North Londoners are scheduled to travel to Etihad Stadium in the English top-tier clash, albeit they are to do so without Micky at the heart of defence, if Dr. Brar is to be believed.

Discussing the current situation of the Lilywhites defender in an exclusive interview with Tottenham News, Dr. Rajpal Brar said:

“This sounds like a higher Grade 2 or potentially even a standard Grade 3 hamstring tear.

“His return to training will be a progression of strength and mobility training combined with ramping up sport-specific activities, particularly sprinting.

“It seems unlikely that he’ll be ready right after the international break.“

The Dutchman’s absence is a massive blow for Tottenham, given his immense impact since joining the club, and with Van de Ven sidelined, Postecoglou will likely have to rely on Cristian Romero to marshal the backline alongside a rotational partner in Radu Dragusin.

The injury will add to the already hefty roster on the sidelines as Tottenham face a heavily scheduled period of fixtures ahead, and the Spurs faithful will be sweating about their starting defenders fitness coming back from international break.

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Do you think Van de Ven will be back at the weekend when Spurs face City? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

Postecoglou to be sacked by Tottenham if he fails in one major area

Tottenham Hotspur have lost two consecutive games in all competitions as Ipswich Town and Galatasaray thwarted them before the international break. The successive defeats mean Spurs have lost three of their last five matches and having fallen to 10th place in the Premier League standings, the pressure is starting to mount on Ange Postecoglou.

While the manager has made it clear that he expects to stay in the role, Mick Brown, a former Manchester United scout believes otherwise according to Football Insider. Postecoglou’s poor defensive tactics could lead to his downfall soon, Brown says, especially given the cheap goals which they have shipped in recent outings which gave Palace and Ipswich their first league wins of 2024/25.

Spurs have a massive challenge following the international break as they take on Manchester City away from home in the Premier League. A loss against the defending champions would push them into the bottom half of the table, subject to other results, although regardless of the game it would be an absolutely ridiculous decision to get rid of the Australian.

The blame for Tottenham Hotspur’s situation belongs solely to Daniel Levy, whose obsession with signing younger players has left the team terribly short in some areas. There are just three specialised central defenders at Postecoglou’s disposal, while no reliable offensive options are available either if the manager’s preferred trio gets injured.

Postecoglou’s possible sacking will only go on to show that Levy is concerned with making the manager the scapegoat rather than looking at his incompetence, which previously led to fabulous managers like Antonio Conte and Jose Mourinho being made to look like failures as well. Admittedly, the fans would also turn on Levy if he makes yet another haphazard call.

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Not only would it be a completely unjust decision to part with Postecoglou now, but would rather see Tottenham take a step or two back. The manager has managed his limited resources well and remains firmly in the hunt for two trophies, the Europa League and the Carabao Cup, which Spurs have a very good chance at winning.

Dragusin’s agent blamed for Tottenham exit talks

Tottenham Hotspur defender Radu Dragusin has been linked with departing north London in January having fallen behind Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven in Ange Postecoglou’s pecking order. The Romanian international has been linked with a January swoop to Serie A, where Juventus and Napoli are keen on adding his expertise.

With that said, Paul Robinson, a former Tottenham player believes the rumours regarding the centre back’s departure in the winter are actually wide of the mark. Moreover, the Englishman believes that the player’s agent has been responsible for circulating talk over his exit amid hopes that his client’s role at Spurs could improve as a result.

Tottenham Hotspur News quoted Robinson as saying the following words.

“Agents do that, players do that. They can get noises out there via various means, and now with the number of media outlets, it only takes one story for you to plant an acorn and soon you’ve got an oak tree. I don’t think Tottenham do any deals for Dragusin in January, loan or permanent. He’s only just signed and Spurs fans haven’t seen the best of him yet. He will get a run of games with Romero and van de Ven’s injury and disciplinary records.”

Indeed, Radu Dragusin’s sale in January seems like a very distant prospect irrespective of whether or not there is any truth behind claims linking him to the Serie A. Juventus require a central defender after an ACL injury to Gleison Bremer while Antonio Conte is also always on the lookout for fresh faces, and so the Italian duo might actually have an interest in Dragusin.

Nevertheless, he arrived at Spurs very recently and has been playing a decent share of minutes in the EFL Cup and the UEFA Europa League, although admittedly it is less than what he would like. There could be a better run ahead of him, however, as the FA Cup gets underway shortly while Postecoglou’s preferred duo is struggling with fitness.

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It will be interesting to see what the player’s thoughts are on his future, though he has remained tight lipped and stayed away from the media in recent weeks.

Tottenham Hotspur have been subject to links with a move for Brighton-owned Leicester City attacking midfielder Facundo Buonanotte following his impressive performances for the Foxes in the ongoing 2024/25 campaign.

The North Londoners have been looking to bring in a new midfielder to compete with James Maddison, who has a tendency to lose his form in the middle of the season. The Australian head coach has preferred to play Dejan Kulusevski down the middle off late owing to his capabilities in tight spaces and the intent to wiggle his way out of close situations.

The Argentine midfielder has now emerged as a potential solution for the North Londoners. He offers not only creativity but also technical brilliance and versatility in the final third. The Brighton maestro has the ability to dictate the pace of the play and combine that with his knack for getting important goals—it makes him an ideal candidate to backup Madison or even step in during dips in the latter’s form.

Purple patch Buonanotte

Facundo Buonanotte has been putting up some exciting performances donning the Leicester City badge in the ongoing campaign, where he has already contributed three goals for the Foxes and is the second-highest scorer behind Jamie Vardy.

The Lilywhites interest in bringing the 19-year-old to White Hart Lane signals Levy’s intent to strengthen the depth of Ange’s roster while maintaining performance consistency on the pitch along the season (in other words, avoiding what happened in the latter part of the previous campaign).

However, the race for his signatures is a tough one with the likes of Manchester City also vying for the Argentine’s signatures. And in a recent report via. Football Insider, former Tottenham goalkeeper Paul Robinson also insists that German giants Borussia Dortmund are interested in the player’s signature.

While Dortmund’s interest doesn’t take all the headlines, it is certainly one that Levy needs to be concerned about.

Can Tottenham compete with Dortmund for his signatures?

The Bundesliga side has a knack for developing young players and handing them opportunities to shine at the highest level. Their coming into the picture means Tottenham will face a difficult competition to sign the Leicester midfielder.

Borussia Dortmund’s track record of developing young talents like Jude Bellingham, Jadon Sancho, and Erling Haaland makes them an attractive destination for any rising player like Buonanotte. Nuri Şahin & Co. have the space and ability to offer consistent game time to the 19-year-old, and it would be something that they can use as a measure to pursue his services.

For Tottenham to compete for Buonanotte, Daniel Levy must offer the Argentine sensation a clear pathway to first-team football, be it either as an alternative to Maddison or in a rotational role.

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Do you think Tottenham can sign Buonanotte? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

Brighton and Hove Albion right-back Tariq Lamptey has emerged as a target for Tottenham

Tottenham Hotspur boss is supposedly in the market for adding an attacking right-back to his defensive ranks, especially owing to speculation surrounding Pedro Porro.

Pedro Porro has been impressing for Spurs this season, and looks as if he will be the first-choice right-back for Spain with Real Madrid star Dani Carvajal out for the rest of the season with a serious knee injury. Real Madrid are looking for a long-term successor to Carvajal, and the Tottenham man is one of the players on their list.

And Porro made no secret of his desire to join Real Madrid upon joining up with the Spain squad earlier this week. The 25-year-old’s ambitions to play for Los Blancos is hardly surprising, given Madrid are the pinnacle of the footballing world for most of the players. Tottenham will be sweating on Porro’s future but they appear to be working behind the scenes to sign his potential replacement.

According to an exclusive report from FootballTransfers, Tottenham are exploring a January swoop for Brighton and Hove Albion right-back Tariq Lamptey.

Having signed from Chelsea back in January 2020, Tariq Lamptey has not been able to live up to his true potential due to persistent injury problems. Over four-and-a-half seasons at the Amex Stadium, the full-back has managed to clock only 106 appearances across all competitions.

Since recovering from a muscle injury, the 24-year-old has struggled to break back into Brighton’s first team this season under new manager Fabian Hurzeler, making just one league appearance off the bench against Wolverhampton Wanderers. Joel Veltman and Jack Hinshelwood are ahead of Lamptey in the pecking order and, with the 11-cap Ghana international’s contract expiring in June 2025 (Transfermarkt), the aforementioned report adds that the Seagulls may be intent on selling him in January transfer window rather than letting him walk away as a free agent.

Rapid, agile and attacking, Lamptey likes to move the ball quickly up the wing and link up with his teammates in the final third of the pitch. As a versatile player, the ex-Chelsea man is able to operate in the wing-back role, as well as a right-sided midfielder. And such flexibility would be a boon for any manager, let alone Ange Postecoglou.

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Tottenham star Pedro Porro impresses on national duty

A nasty ACL injury suffered by Real Madrid right-back Dani Carvajal coupled with Pedro Porro’s good form for Tottenham Hotspur has led to the latter receiving call-ups to the Spanish national team over the last couple of international breaks. In October, Porro was called up for the first time in over six months and impressed with his displays over two matches, which led to Luis de la Fuente deciding to count him for a couple of more Nations League clashes.

This time around, Spain came up against Denmark in Copenhagen in their penultimate group stage clash of the Nations League and emerged 2-1 victors, courtesy of goals from Mikel Oyarzabal and Ayoze Perez in either half. The successful result has secured safe passage into the last four of the competition for the newly crowned Euro winners. Pedro Porro started the game and played the full 90 minutes, earning himself an impressive rating of 8.1 on Fotmob.

He was very good on the ball, completing 51 passes out of an attempted 57 and also created two chances when raiding forward. Porro had six passes into the final third and also completed 80% of his long balls. When defending, he gave Albert Gronbaek a hard time as he won 60% of his five attempted tackles and made four clearances. He won five duels, made two interceptions and 13 recoveries to cap off a wonderful individual display which is not a surprise by any means given his work for Tottenham this season.

Pedro Porro has clearly shown that he is a worthy enough successor for Dani Carvajal in Spain’s national setup. Moreover, he is aged just 25 and the base years of his career are yet to come. Apart from the Spurs coaching staff and fans, Real Madrid would also have been impressed by the player’s performance if they had a close eye on him. There have been reports of their interest in Porro as Carvajal’s replacement, so there is every reason to think his display against Denmark was under the magnifying class.

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Spain’s next UEFA Nations League game is against Tenerife against Switzerland. With not much to play for in the final group game, Ange Postecoglou will hope that Pedro Porro is afforded some much-needed rest from the fixture. It would equip him to stay fully fit for next weekend’s Premier League clash against Manchester City, in which the Citizens will come at Spurs in full flow as they look to overcome their run of four straight defeats, so the Lilywhites will need Porro to be at his freshest and best version.

Grealish loan unlikely as Tottenham must pay a big fee for his signing

Tottenham Hotspur have recently been linked with Jack Grealish’s transfer from Manchester City. The Lilywhites have reportedly been meaning to take advantage of his situation at the Etihad Stadium, where he has fallen down the pecking order under Pep Guardiola and the manager hinted at further dissatisfaction at the former Aston Villa man by hinting that he was misfit.

Grealish has failed to live up to the billing at Manchester City after a lucrative move a couple of years ago and while there was less concern about his qualities in 2022/23, Jeremy Doku’s signing and rapid development thereafter have seen the Belgian prodigy usurp his English counterpart to a starting role on the left wing.

However, City are still believed to be keen with holding onto Grealish as Fichajes has claimed that they will not let him leave on loan, as previously rumoured. Additionally, it would take an extremely enticing offer from any side, Spurs included, to land Grealish given that his contract in Manchester runs through to June 2027, which would ensure that his employers have the upper hand in any potential transfer negotiation.

While Tottenham may have been interested in Grealish who is without a doubt an incredible player, it remains to be seen if they require him. Son Heung-min is perhaps a better forward, who is more direct in his approach and has a better eye for goal. Moreover, his contract extension until 2026 is more or less secured, so Grealish’s signing could be a backward step.

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The next year and a half would be a good time for Mikey Moore to continue his development beside the South Korean international, and Grealish’s possible arrival could spill water on any of Ange Postecoglou’s plans of integrating the 17-year-old as a regular fixture into the first team setup.

Tottenham star Archie Gray shines for England Under-21 vs Spain in a friendly fixture

Tottenham Hotspur stars have been impressing for their respective countries over the international break, much to the liking of Ange Postecoglou.

Archie Gray was in international action on Friday evening as England Under-21s faced Spain Under-21s away in a friendly fixture at Estadio Municipal Ciudad de La Línea. It was an entertaining 0-0 affair, but Archie Gray did benefit a lot from the valuable minutes after barely featuring for Spurs in the Premier League.

The teenager, who arrived from Leeds United in a £30 million deal, has mostly been used as a squad player by Ange Postecoglou this season. He has started all of Spurs’ Europa League and Carabao Cup fixtures, playing almost in every position across the backline.

However, the Englishman has now demonstrated to Big Ange that he might be ready for some regular Premier League minutes after his strong performance for England’s Under-21s in their 0-0 stalemate with Spain’s Under-21s.

Starting at right-back, the 18-year-old made four tackles, two clearances, won five of his seven ground duels and two out of two aerial duels. Gray showed good composure on the ball, completing 91 per cent of his passes and also winning a foul for his team. While his two attempted crosses in the box were not accurate, there was still plenty for Big Ange to like about the Spurs starlet’s full 90-minute display in a Three Lions shirt. (Stats courtesy: SofaScore)

Gray’s strong showing away on international duty comes at a juncture where his Tottenham teammate Rodrigo Bentancur is likely to be suspended for seven games. The Uruguayan international’s domestic ban looms large, following the FA’s decision to charge him with an “aggravated breach” of conduct for remarks he made about his teammate Son Heung-min.

Though the decision is yet to come officially from the FA, reports suggest it is likely to stand and Bentancur, who opened up for the first time on his potential ban, is set to miss critical games across the next two months. Without his presence in midfield, Big Ange will need to rely on other options to negotiate a tough run of domestic fixtures after November’s international break.

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Bentancur’s potential absence certainly opens the door for young talents to step up, and this could not be a better time for Gray to prove his talent for Spurs. The youngster deserves opportunities to show the Spurs gaffer what he can offer from his natural No.6 position.

And after his display for England Under-21s on the international stage, Big Ange should not hesitate to give Gray his first Premier League start for Spurs and subsequently a run of games in his preferred midfield position.

Tottenham Hotspur defender Cristian Romero has been enduring a difficult time with injury problems off late, with the Argentine narrowly escaping long-term injury ahead of the ongoing international break.

The Argentine defender was struggling with injury ahead of the injury break and got the Lilywhites faithful sweating with potential long-term concerns; however, he returned to the side as the injury appeared to be not as serious as initially suggested.

With the Spur star already struggling, he was called up to the Argentine squad, something that the North Londoners supporters didn’t understand.

Romero injury scare for Spurs

Now the defender faces injury concerns after being taken off at halftime in Argentina’s 2-1 World Cup qualifying defeat to Paraguay.

And per Argentine journalist Gaston Edul on X, he is set to undergo further tests to determine the severity of the injury.

John Wenham, owner of the reputable Spurs podcast Lilywhite Rose, doesn’t expect the former Atalanta defender to be fit for the Lilywhites next game against Manchester City following the international break. Speaking in an exclusive interview with Tottenham News, he has asked other players in the squad to step up in Romero’s absence.

He said:

“As soon as Romero featured against Ipswich, he was always going to travel with Argentina. That is how he is, he is incredibly passionate about his country. He is also well-received there, playing for Argentina is a massive thing for him.

“As long as he plays in the game before, he will never miss out on an international break. Unfortunately, it does mean we will probably be without him against Manchester City. However, we went to City last year with Ben Davies and Emerson Royal as centre-backs, and we didn’t lose the match. Other players just need to step up.”

Tense days for the supporters

At the moment, Tottenham Hotspur will once again hold their breaths with the latest injury blow to Cristian Romero, and the concerns would be more intense if the Argentine defender’s situation has worsened.

Now it is only about waiting and testing results as Ange Postecoglou goes to the drawing board with Romero’s fitness in question for Spurs’ upcoming fixture against Manchester City.

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Who do you think will step up if Romero is absent from squad vs. City? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

Emerson Royal’s exit from Tottenham in the summer had raised questions about the team’s viability at right-back. But the fact that Pedro Porro, Archie Gray, and Djed Spence could occupy those roles meant Spurs could still make do.

In the months since Royal’s departure, however, two of the players have been surrounded by uncertainty regarding their future at the club, while one is not preferred by the manager.

And so, Spurs are in a position where they need to reinforce their right-back slot regardless of what happens to their players.

Tottenham targetting Tariq Lamptey amid Pedro Porro exit speculation

As reported by TeamTalk, Tottenham are considering making a move for Brighton right-back Tariq Lamptey.

Spurs’ situation at the right-back slot is particularly dire. Their leakage of goals has not been fixed since Emerson Royal’s departure, and both Pedro Porro and Archie Gray have been subject of exit speculation from North London in recent days, with Djed Spence all but a fringe presence in the first team.

Under new head coach Fabian Hürzeler, Lamptey has featured sporadically, having registered a goal and assist each in four matches across all competitions. He has been nursing persistent injury issues over the past two seasons.

The 24-year-old’s £35k-per-week contract at Brighton expires at the end of the season. He is currently valued by Transfermarkt at €12 million.

Profile is not an issue, but injuries are

Injuries are a concern with Lamptey, naturally, especially when you consider Ange Postecoglou’s intense football.

But even taking that into account, given his contract situation, not much argument can be made against exploring a move for the Ghana international. That he is in the final year of his contract means Brighton are not convinced about giving him a new deal, so if Spurs are interested, the Seagulls will be more than willing to reach an agreement for a small fee instead of losing the player for free next summer.

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