Jose Mourinho says he cannot afford to rest Harry Kane over Christmas, as Tottenham begin their festive fixtures with Wednesda night's showdown against Liverpool.

Kane tore his hamstring on New Year's Day last season after playing every minute over the festive period but the England captain has been under less strain this term, with Mourinho able to rest him in the Europa League.

After tonight's top-of-the-table clash at Anfield, Spurs face another big game at home against Leicester on Sunday, the EFL Cup quarter-final at Stoke next Wednesday and League matches against Wolves, Fulham and Leeds by January 2.

Despite the hectic schedule during this truncated season, the prospect of resting Kane is laughable for Mourinho.

"Yeah, he is not playing [against Liverpool], I give him a rest, so no risk of injury," joked the Spurs manager. "And against Leicester, I rest him again to protect him from injury. I want to win matches. And to win matches, I have to play with my best players.

"We have the red light, the green light and the orange light and I promise you that if a player is on the orange light we're going to protect him. But when the players are on the green light and they tell us, 'I feel fine', then great.

"But sometimes injuries happen when you're in an amazing moment and there are no signs that anything can happen. That's the way it is. Our calendar is really hard. I managed Harry in the matches where I felt I could. He didn't play much in the Europa League, so in there we managed [him].

"But now in Premier League, every match is what it is. We have this sequence of matches — Liverpool, Leicester, Stoke in the quarter-final — and I need the best players to play."

Spurs and Liverpool are level on 25 points, with Mourinho's side aiming to redress a poor run at Anfield which has seen them win once in their past 26 visits.

Liverpool are one of just four clubs in the top flight who remain in Tier 2 of the Government's coronavirus restrictions — along with Everton, Brighton and Southampton — so they can still host 2,000 fans tonight, a situation Mourinho described as unfair and confusing.

"I don't think it's fair because, of course, the team that has home fans has a different intensity, has a different temperature, a different atmosphere and that is, of course, an advantage," he said.

"But I don't think we can be selfish because London is in Tier 3 and Liverpool are not.

"Lucky you. And unlucky us. But I'm not going to complain. I'm very confused with this situation. One day Tier 3, another day Tier 2, another day 2,000 at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and it is the same [number] as Accrington's stadium.

"There are too many contradictions, too many things I don't understand and I don't want to get involved on that."

Gareth Bale is a doubt for Spurs after illness, while Erik Lamela (Achilles) and Japhet Tanganga (shoulder) remain sidelined.

Meanwhile, Mourinho has said there is "no way" Harry Winks will be allowed to leave the club on loan in January, despite the England midfielder having not featured in the League since the 3-3 draw with West Ham in October.

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