Tottenham forward Harry Kane is set for surgery to repair a ruptured tendon in his left hamstring, with the England captain expected to return to training in April.
The 26-year-old suffered the injury during the 1-0 Premier League defeat at Southampton on New Year’s Day and specialists advised an operation was needed.
It is the latest injury Kane has suffered in recent seasons. Here, the PA news agency looks at the extent of them and how Spurs coped without him.
September – November 2016
Kane first sustained an ankle injury in a 1-0 Premier League win over Sunderland in September 2016 – where he scored the winner. He fell awkwardly in the final few minutes and scans revealed ligament damage. He ended up sitting out 10 Tottenham games, also missing an international break and returned for a 1-1 draw at Arsenal on November 6. Spurs had a mixed time without him, winning the first four games of his absence, including a 2-0 success over Manchester City, but then things went south as they lost two and drew four of the next six – a run of games which saw them knocked out of the EFL Cup and suffer damaging results in their Champions League group campaign.
March – April 2017
The England striker suffered a repeat problem in the early stages of the 6-0 FA Cup win at Millwall in March 2017. He tangled with Jake Cooper after getting a shot away and was unable to continue. Fears were that he would be out for a similar period to his absence earlier in the same season but he only missed three Spurs games, all of which resulted in wins. He returned as a substitute against Watford in early April.
March – April 2018
Almost one year on from his last problem, Kane went down again and it was a worrying time for both Tottenham and England fans ahead of the World Cup. It looked serious as the striker had to limp off against Bournemouth after being caught trying to turn the ball into the net. However, it was a quick recovery from Kane, who only missed one Tottenham game, along with two England matches as he returned for the success at Chelsea. Spurs won their only game without him, in the FA Cup at Swansea.
January – February 2019
Another ankle problem for the England captain. He went down at the end of the 1-0 defeat by Manchester United and did not return to action until they played at Burnley nearly six weeks later – returning with a goal. Spurs won five of their seven matches without their talisman, including a 3-0 Champions League win over Borussia Dortmund.
April – June 2019
Harry Kane suffered a lateral ligament injury to his left ankle in the Champions League quarter-final first leg against Man City. He would miss nine matches and although Tottenham would win only two of the six league games he missed, they still managed to progress past City and then Ajax without him to reach the Champions League final. He returned to start the showpiece event in Madrid on June 1 but could not stop Liverpool winning 2-0.
