Tottenham injury update: latest news and return dates for James Maddison, Brennan Johnson, and Rodrigo Bentancur
Tottenham will be hoping that two new injury concerns sustained against Arsenal are not serious.
Spurs continued their outstanding early upward trajectory under Ange Postecoglou on Sunday, twice recovering from behind to tie 2-2 in a thrilling Premier League north London derby at the Emirates Stadium due to a brace from captain Heung-min Son.
Tottenham are unbeaten in the Premier League under their flamboyant new manager, winning four of their six games to sit fourth and above Arsenal on goal difference – just four points behind defending champions Manchester City in first place. So far, their only hiccup has been a Carabao Cup penalty shootout defeat at Fulham.
But the hard-fought point against Arsenal may have come at a cost, with two new injury worries needing to be addressed this week ahead of another vital match against Liverpool at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Saturday.
Here is the most recent Tottenham injury news, as well as projected return dates.
James Maddison
On Sunday, Maddison was the star of the show for Tottenham, providing both of Son’s equalizers in another pivotal performance for his new team.
However, the England playmaker was taken down in pain in the second half of the derby after appearing to hyperextend his right knee.
Fortunately for Spurs, Maddison was able to get up and play after receiving extensive treatment, however he was eventually replaced by Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg with 12 minutes remaining in the game.
However, it was a worrying moment for the former Leicester midfielder, who will need to be tested and scanned this week to ensure there is no residual issue.
Postecoglou, for his part, appeared confident that Maddison’s ability to play on proved the injury was not significant, despite admitting that he was not 100 percent heading into the game anyway.
“I had a little moment where I tackled Jorginho where I jolted my knee a little bit,” Maddison, who left the pitch without the need for crutches or an ice pack, said.
“You never want to be playing in a derby when you’re not 100 percent because it can cost the team, so I had to come off for the last few minutes.”
“I felt the lads were fantastic. We probed deep and demonstrated quality… In the end, 2-2 may be a fair result, but we left everything out there and you can’t ask much more of the guys.”
Potential return date: September 30 or October 1 at Liverpool (H).
Johnson, Brennan
Johnson made his debut Spurs start against Arsenal after joining from Nottingham Forest on the last day of the summer transfer window for £47.5 million.
The Welsh international made a promising full debut, contributing to Son’s first goal and forcing David Raya into a fantastic save.
However, he also pulled up with a hamstring injury and was replaced just after the hour mark by Manor Solomon.
“It appears that he felt something. “I believe it’s a hamstring, so we’ll see,” Postecoglou said.
A hamstring problem would almost certainly keep Johnson out of Liverpool’s visit to north London, but it’s unclear how much time the 22-year-old will lose, with Spurs also visiting newly-promoted Luton before the next international break in October.
Date of possible return: October 2023
Heung-min Son
Son was superb against Tottenham, leading by example with two equalizers to win a merited point and bring his season goal tally to five in seven appearances – already halfway to his total from last year.
The South Korean did not appear to be out of shape on the day, yet Postecoglou confirmed after the game that, like Maddison, Son was not fully fit going into the derby.
“Madders and Sonny went into it and they weren’t 100 per cent going into the game, but they got through it – which suggests to me that it is nothing serious,” the Australian said.
Son will be expected to start as usual against Liverpool at the weekend with no midweek Carabao Cup fixture to contend with for Spurs after their early exit.
Potential return date: Liverpool (H) on September 30
Giovani Lo Celso
Lo Celso has only made two appearances for Spurs this season, the last coming in the Carabao Cup defeat at Fulham.
The Argentine midfielder is looking to win back favour at the club under Postecoglou having spent the last season-and-a-half on loan at Villarreal.
However, those efforts are being hindered by a leg issue that continues to limit his involvement.
Speaking ahead of the late comeback win over Sheffield United last weekend, Postecoglou said: “Gio is still working his way back.
“He had a session with us yesterday, but we won’t rush him back. It was just good that he got through the session, and the plan now is to reintegrate him.”
It remains to be seen exactly when Lo Celso will be in a position to return, but if his reintegration is successful over the coming weeks then it seems possible that we could well see him in some capacity just after the international break.
Spurst host Fulham in their first game back on October 23, so that seems like a possibility. Crystal Palace away is after that on the 27th.
Potential return date: After the international break
Rodrigo Bentancur
Bentancur has not featured for Spurs since February, having needed surgery on a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament suffered against Leicester.
Fans got excited when the talented Uruguayan midfielder was recently spotted in a training video, though Standard Sport understands that was not a return to training but rather joining in with the warm-up representing the next stage of his rehabilitation programme.
Bentancur went back to individual drills after that and Postecoglou has said that he hopes he could be slowly reintegrated into training over the coming weeks, with Spurs still targeting November for his return to match action after such a lengthy lay-off.
“Everyone from last week is in a good space. In terms of longer ones, two or three weeks away,” Postecoglou said before the Arsenal game.
“Bryan Gil, Lo Celso, Bentancur, hopefully over the next few weeks they will slowly get involved in training.”
Tottenham face Chelsea, Wolves and Aston Villa in November, so one of these games could well be the return date for Bentancur.
Potential return date: November
Ivan Perisic
Perisic sadly will not be back on the pitch for Tottenham any time soon and indeed may well have already played his final game for the club.
Out of contract next summer, the versatile Croatian veteran suffered what Spurs described as a “complex ACL injury” in non-contact training last week that requires surgery.
Perisic is now expected to miss the rest of the season.
Potential return date: Next season
Ryan Sessegnon
The injury-plagued Sessegnon suffered a fresh setback in July when it was revealed that he had suffered another hamstring issue during pre-season training.
The left-back, who had not played for Tottenham since February due to an initial hamstring problem, then underwent surgery in a bid to provide a permanent solution to the problem.
Sessegnon has yet to resume first-team training at Hotspur Way and it remains to be seen when he will be available to Postecoglou, with a chance to impress potentially resulting from Perisic’s season-ending injury.
Potential return date: After the international break
Bryan Gil
Gil also went under the knife in August, having surgery to repair a groin injury that scuppered his chance of a summer exit.
Like Lo Celso and Bentancur, Postecoglou is hopeful that the Spanish winger can be successfully reintegrated into first-team training over the coming weeks.
An October return could be on the cards for Gil, but like the rest of Spurs’ long-term absentees it very much depends on how things progress in the weeks ahead.
Potential return date: After the international break
Alfie Whiteman
Academy graduate goalkeeper Whiteman suffered a serious ankle injury during training on Tottenham’s pre-season tour in Singapore in July.
He subsequently underwent surgery and faces many months on the sidelines as he continues his own rehab programme.
Potential return date: Later in the season
