Tottenham were dealt an injury blow against Southampton and now there are reported fears over how long Harry Kane could be sidelined for.
The 26-year-old has been as important as ever for Spurs so far this season, bagging 17 goals and two assists in 25 appearances.
In turn, he has been a key part of Tottenham’s resurgence under Jose Mourinho as they’ve tried to put themselves back in contention for a top-four finish in the Premier League.
Defeat to Southampton on Wednesday was a big blow as they remain six points off the pace set by Chelsea in fourth spot, and now it appears as though they may be set for more bad news.
According to The Sun, it has been suggested that Kane could be absent for the rest of January after picking up a hamstring injury in the defeat.
If that recovery timeline is accurate, that would see him miss games against Middlesbrough, Liverpool, Watford and Norwich City, and so it will be a real concern for Spurs and Mourinho as to how they cope with his absence moving forward.
With a lack of quality depth and options behind Kane, the report above from the Sun even suggests that it could force Tottenham into the transfer market to try and bolster their attacking options with a player who suits Mourinho’s style of play.
Time will tell if he’s backed by the club in the transfer window, but it would certainly be a welcome boost for all concerned if he were able to bring in a fresh face, with the only other option being to deploy other attacking players in a less natural role up top until Kane returns.
For now though, the first thing that Tottenham will do is carry out further tests to understand the severity of the problem. That said, a hamstring injury is always a tricky one to manage, and they certainly won’t want to risk bringing Kane back too soon given the threat of suffering a setback.