Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino has revealed his belief that striker Harry Kane should be back to face bitter rivals Arsenal next weekend.
The 23-year-old has been sidelined since last month after sustaining an ankle injury, and will miss upcoming games with Leicester City and Bayer Leverkusen due to the problem.
However, Pochettino remains hopeful that he will return to full fitness in time to line up against the Gunners, as he also has to contend with the on-going absence of influential defensive ace Toby Alderweireld with his side looking to maintain their unbeaten start to the Premier League campaign.
“It’s difficult to know with Harry, but we’ll see,” Pochettino said, as reported by The Guardian. “If not Wednesday, maybe Sunday [for Arsenal]. If not, we have to wait two weeks until after the international break.”
The Spurs boss will be keen to avoid rushing Kane back and aggravating the issue, and so he’ll undoubtedly consult with his medical team and decide on whether or not the England international is fit enough to face Arsenal in an important clash at the top of the table.
Kane had scored two goals and provided an assist in five league games prior to the injury, but credit must go to Pochettino and his players for being able to deal with his absence and not allowing it to derail their impressive start to the campaign.
Kane scored 25 league goals last season as Tottenham emerged as title contenders, and he’ll hope to return sooner rather than later and begin to have the same level of influence on the team in the months ahead.