Evening Standard
·1 November 2024
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·1 November 2024
Spurs could be without both first-choice centre-backs for north London showdown with last season’s top-four rivals
A late call will be made on the fitness of Heung-min Son before Tottenham host Aston Villa on Sunday.
Son has missed three of the last four Premier League games for Spurs including the 1-0 defeat at Crystal Palace last weekend. Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou previously explained that the club would be “conservative” with the South Korean’s game time due to him having missed a lot of matches due to hamstring trouble, and having reported soreness after his comeback against West Ham.
He could feature in the match against Unai Emery’s Villa, though, with Postecoglou explaining on Friday: “Sonny has sort of trained today. If he gets through training tomorrow [Saturday], he should be okay.”
Meanwhile, Tottenham centre-back Micky van de Ven is expected to be out until the November international break with the hamstring injury that forced him off in Wednesday night’s 2-1 Carabao Cup victory over Manchester City. Radu Dragusin is expected to be handed a run of games in the starting lineup in his place.
Key boost: Tottenham will likely have captain Heung-min Son back from injury against Aston Villa
Action Images via Reuters
“The boys worked out the other night,” Postecoglou said, referring to Wednesday. “The main one out of that is Micky. He has strained a hamstring. It is not too serious, but probably after the international break for him.
“The other ones who are a bit sore [are Cristian] Romero and [Timo] Werner. But at the moment there is still a chance for the weekend.”
If Romero isn’t fit either, then Ben Davies seems likely to partner Dragusin in central defence against Villa. Winger Wilson Odobert is facing several more weeks on the sidelines after his serious setback after returning from a hamstring injury, while Djed Spence has also been absent of late with a groin problem.
Predicted Tottenham XI (4-3-3): Vicario; Porro, Dragusin, Romero, Udogie; Bissouma, Kulusevski, Maddison; Johnson, Solanke, Son
Doubts: Son, Romero, Werner
Injured: Spence, Odobert, Van de Ven
Date and time: 2pm GMT on Sunday November 3, 2024
Venue: Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
TV channel: Sky Sports