Tottenham defender Toby Alderweireld is set to be sidelined for up to another six weeks in a shattering blow for Tottenham, according to a reliable journalist.
ESPN FC correspondent Dan Kilpatrick reported on his personal Twitter account on Tuesday morning that the Belgium international will be out until late January after undergoing a new scan on his injured hamstring.
#thfc Spurs expect Alderweireld to be sidelined for another 5 or 6 weeks after latest scan. Should be back for Utd-Liverpool-Arsenal-Juve run starting in late Jan.
— Dan Kilpatrick (@Dan_KP) December 12, 2017
The Belgium international broke down in the first half of Spurs’ 3-1 Champions League win over Real Madrid on 1 November and Mauricio Pochettino subsequently revealed he will be out for around two months.
But Alderweireld, 28, is set for an even longer spell on the sidelines in a devastating update for Tottenham given his importance to the team.
Kipatrick reported that the centre-back is expected to be back in action at the end of next month for a run of fixtures starting with Spurs’ Premier League clash against Manchester United on 31 January.
OPINION
The Alderweireld update is a shattering one for Tottenham. Fans hoping the team’s best centre-back will definitely be in action in two weeks’ time have to think again. Recent results have highlighted the importance of the centre-back, who is as comfortable pinging 60-yard crossfield passes on a sixpence as he is winning headers in both penalty boxes and snuffing out offensive danger. The Belgian‘s status as one of the Premier League’s outstanding centre-backs is without question. Davison Sanchez, Jan Vertonghen and Eric Dier are fine defenders but none are in the same class as Alderweireld and it is no coincidence that Tottenham have won just two of their six Premier League matches in the absence of the brilliant Belgian and dropped to sixth in the table. They have also looked vulnerable in the early stages of matches, conceding within 15 minutes of three of their last four games. The result of the new scan could put Spurs’ top-four hopes in serious doubt.