Tottenham’s difficult season under Thomas Frank continued on Saturday evening as they were dumped out of the FA Cup at the third-round stage by Aston Villa in north London.
Despite somewhat of a second-half fightback led by a well-taken Wilson Odobert goal, Spurs just came up short and were defeated 2-1 ahead of some unsavoury scenes at full-time as both sides engaged in a physical altercation on the pitch.
Spurs saw yet further injury concerns during the match as the list of players unavailable to under-pressure Frank lengthened further. The Dane has confirmed that Spurs are in the market this January, as their slide down the Premier League table continues and now out of both domestic cup competitions.
Relegation-threatened West Ham United are next up for Spurs on Saturday and Frank will hope for an injury boost or two before a must-win London derby against the Hammers, who squeezed through to the FA Cup fourth round against Championship QPR on Sunday but needed extra time in order to do so.
Will Richarlison be fit to face West Ham?
Richarlison hobbled off in the 31st minute against Villa holding his hamstring, in a latest injury concern for Spurs. The Brazilian has suffered from frequent hamstring issues in the past and Frank called for the footballing authorities to “look into” growing injury lists across the division after the busy festive period.
“I think we have done a lot of things right to get him where he is now; I think he has done a lot of things right,” Frank said. “It's not only about us, it's about every club. I think there are a few injuries across the Premier League. I think it's something for the football authorities to look into as well. We played five games in 13 days, four in 10, that's one of the few clubs that did that, and this is our third time this season.
“That's the most tricky thing with two days in between. We are dealing with it, we are doing everything we can to compete in it, but that's a tough schedule.”
Richarlison’s fitness is being assessed ahead of West Ham’s visit to north London on Saturday.
Bergvall and Udogie aim for return to action amidst mounting injury list
Spurs will hope to have Lucas Bergvall back in action on Saturday, after the midfielder picked up a knock in the 3-2 defeat at Bournemouth and was not included in the matchday squad to face Villa. He will aim to be back for West Ham.
“Lucas is being assessed today,” Frank said in his pre-match press conference last Thursday. “We will know more later today with him.”
Frank will also hope to have Destiny Udogie back in his matchday squad, as the left-back is nearing a return from a hamstring issue after missing the last eight matches. Dominic Solanke returned from the bench against Villa, but Udogie may not have much longer to wait.
Set to remain out for the near future is Rodrigo Bentancur, who picked up his own hamstring injury at Vitality Stadium and may be out for at least three months according to reports in his native Uruguay relayed by The Standard.
Winger Mohammed Kudus is also set to be out until after the March international break, following a thigh injury picked up against Sunderland. Coming just days after the club sold Brennan Johnson to Crystal Palace, Kudus’ injury arrived as a major blow and left Frank with few wide options to choose from.
Dejan Kulusevski and James Maddison remain out with long-term injuries. Frank confirmed that the Swede recently had knee injections to help with his recovery and may be back on the grass by February, while Maddison is expected to be out for the season.