Tottenham Hotspur have suffered two significant blows in their pursuit of Champions League football, as two more players have been ruled out for the rest of the season through injury.
The Lilywhites will be bidding to end a two-match losing run in Thursday's Premier League London derby with Chelsea, having been bested by both Newcastle United and Arsenal in recent weeks to lose sight of fourth place in the table.
During the 3-2 defeat to the Gunners in Sunday's North London derby, Ange Postecoglou was forced to bring Timo Werner off the pitch just after the half-hour mark, as the RB Leipzig loanee suffered a hamstring injury.
Postecoglou was none the wiser about the severity of Werner's issue after the game, but speaking to Tottenham's media channels, the Australian conceded that the former Chelsea man is unlikely to play again this season.
Werner's absence could also mean that he has been seen in a Tottenham shirt for the final time, as the Lilywhites are yet to decide whether to trigger the £15m option in his agreement to sign him permanently.
Werner, Ben Davies join six-man injury list
Tottenham seemingly came out of the North London derby unscathed otherwise, but Postecoglou also revealed that left-back Ben Davies had hurt his calf and is set to miss Spurs' final five matches of the campaign too.
"Unfortunately we've had a couple of issues out of the last game," Postecoglou said. "Timo with a hamstring, so he'll miss the rest of the season. Only three weeks to go so he won't be back. Ben Davies picked up a calf issue which will probably rule him out for the rest of the games as well."
Werner and Davies are two of six players expected to miss the rest of the season for Tottenham, who are also coping without Manor Solomon (knee), Fraser Forster (foot), Ryan Sessegnon (hamstring) and Destiny Udogie (thigh).
As well as sitting out the trip to Stamford Bridge, Werner and Davies have been ruled out of crunch clashes with Liverpool (May 5) and Manchester City (May 14), in addition to showdowns with basement boys Burnley (May 11) and already-relegated Sheffield United (May 19).
However, Postecoglou was able to offer one slice of good news on the fitness front, as Oliver Skipp should be back for the trip to Chelsea after sitting out the North London derby defeat to due to a knock.
Who could replace Werner, Davies for Chelsea clash?
Tottenham's existing injury problems meant that Werner and Davies were expected to play pivotal roles for the Lilywhites during the run-in, as Postecoglou's men desperately attempt to get their top-four charge back on track.
Both men's season-ending issues are painful for different reasons, as Werner has shown flashes of excellence on the left for Tottenham, while Davies was the only natural replacement for Udogie after the Italian's operation.
Postecoglou can call upon Brennan Johnson or Richarlison - now fully recovered from a knee issue - to step in for Werner, and the latter's possible recall to the tip of the attack could see Son Heung-min revert to a wide position.
However, with no other natural left-backs in the ranks, Emerson Royal should deputise in that slot for the remainder of 2023-24, unless Postecoglou springs a surprise by shifting Micky van de Ven to a full-back role.
The Dutchman's blistering pace would certainly come in handy out wide, and even though Cristian Romero would be without his first-choice central partner in that scenario, Radu Dragusin is a more than competent alternative. body check tags ::
