Tottenham confirm extent of Wilson Odobert injury as crisis deepens again | OneFootball

Next Spurs manager will have to contend with a lengthy list of absentees

Tottenham have confirmed Wilson Odobert is set to undergo surgery on a serious knee injury that will sideline the winger for the rest of the season.

Odobert limped off and straight down the tunnel after 35 minutes having started Tuesday night’s 2-1 home defeat by Newcastle in the Premier League, replaced by Mathys Tel in what proved to be the final game of Thomas Frank’s troubled Spurs tenure.

Frank said he hoped the injury was not too serious immediately after the game, but reports in France subsequently emerged on Wednesday that the 21-year-old had damaged the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee and would need an operation.

That has now been confirmed by Tottenham, who said Odobert had ruptured his ACL and will undergo surgery next week after visiting a specialist.

They did not give any sort of timeframe for the player’s absence, though it seems unlikely that he will be back before the start of next season given the usual lengthy lay-offs associated with ACL injuries.

“We can confirm that Wilson Odobert has sustained a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee,” Spurs said in a statement.

“Wilson will see a specialist next week before undergoing surgery, and will then commence his rehabilitation with our medical staff. We're all behind you, Wilson.”

Odobert joins an injury list at Spurs that has been persistently extensive for the second season in succession and did not help Frank’s attempts to prolong his eight-month tenure.

It remains to be seen if Dejan Kulusevski will play at all this season, while Pedro Porro, Mohammed Kudus, Rodrigo Bentancur, James Maddison, Lucas Bergvall, Kevin Danso, Ben Davies and Richarlison remain sidelined.

Destiny Udogie will miss at least a month with a hamstring injury suffered in the 2-0 loss to Manchester United last weekend - the same match in which captain Cristian Romero was sent off for the second time this season to incur a four-game domestic suspension.

The likes of Dominic Solanke have also missed significant time through injury this season, though the England striker is now back playing.

Spurs are not in action on FA Cup fourth-round weekend owing to their 2-1 home defeat by Aston Villa in the third round last month, with their next game coming at home to arch-rivals and Premier League leaders Arsenal in the latest instalment of the north London derby on February 22.

It remains to be seen who will be in the Tottenham dugout for that game following Frank’s dismissal, with suggestions that the club could seek an initial interim appointment before naming a long-term successor to the Dane in the summer.