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da prosport bet： Harry Kane is out until early March with ankle ligament damage, per the BBC.
The striker sustained a serious-looking ankle injury against Manchester United at the weekend, and he will now miss the entirety of February.
That means an absence from the second leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final, a minimum of six Premier League games, an FA Cup fourth round tie, and a race to be fit for a home north London derby and the second leg of their Champions League clash with Borussia Dortmund.
Football FanCast are here to run you through the potential consequences of the major lay-off.
Spurs’ season falls apart
Tottenham are already out of the title race – their loss to United leaves them nine points behind leaders Liverpool – but they are still fighting on three fronts, in the FA Cup, the Carabao Cup and the Champions League.
Tough games await in all three, however. Mauricio Pochettino’s side face Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park in the fourth round of the former, Chelsea in the second leg of the semi in the Carabao Cup and Dortmund in Europe.
With Kane absent for all three there is a very real chance that Tottenham could crash and burn.
CheekySport’s Joel claims Spurs badly need to invest in January after not having “the balls” to beat Arsenal. Check out his uncensored opinion in the video below…
Of course, in normal circumstances, Son-Heung Min would be available to lift the goalscoring burden but he is on international duty with South Korea, and Fernando Llorente is the only fully-fit senior striker.
If Pochettino opts to rely on the Spaniard, and he continues to fire blanks – he has yet to score a Premier League goal this season – Spurs could discover their trophy-less fate much earlier than usual.
Llorente shines when given a chance
While Llorente has struggled in front of goal this season, he has also struggled for minutes.
The Spaniard has yet to start a game in the top-flight, but he has had an impact on games in other competitions.
He provided a key assist in the 2-1 European win over PSV Eindhoven, scored a hat-trick in the 7-0 demolition of Tranmere Rovers in the FA Cup and also found the net in the Carabao Cup victory over West Ham United.
There are goals there, but he has not yet been trusted to score them in the top-flight.
If he is given the backing of his manager, there is every chance Llorente could end up a surprise hit and manages to keep Spurs afloat.
Levy takes action
There is the nuclear option of heading into the transfer market.
The silver lining to the potential long-term injury is that it has occurred in January, allowing Spurs to spend if they wish to.
Of course, chairman Daniel Levy failed to sign a single player in the summer transfer window, with the construction of the club’s new stadium sucking money out of the coffers.
Nevertheless, there is every chance that a serious injury could see Levy rethink his stance and attempt to get a deal over the line.
A loan bid for Barcelona star Malcom has been mooted, and would add a versatile option to Spurs’ attack with the added incentive of not carrying a transfer fee.
Levy has masterminded wonderful signings before, and this prognosis could see him dusting off his chequebook once more.