Tottenham hit with fresh Arsenal North London Derby injury worry amid Micky Van de Ven wait
Ange Postecoglou could be without another senior Tottenham star for this weekend's North London Derby against Arsenal. Richarlison, Dominic Solanke and Micky van de Ven all missed the 2-1 defeat to Newcastle before the international break but there is significant hope the latter duo will return on Sunday.
Solanke suffered an ankle injury on his debut against Leicester with Van de Ven picking up a freak knee injury the following week against Everton. Postecoglou described the issues for both as not serious with the two-week break allowing them further time to recover.
As for Richarlison, a return for the clash against Spurs' bitter rivals seems unlikely going off Postecoglou's admission. When delivering the latest team news before Newcastle, he told SPURSPLAY. "The only other one we got midweek is Richarlison, who unfortunately picked up an injury in training, so he'll probably miss the next few weeks."
Alongside those three recent absences, Postecoglou could be without a key midfielder. While in action for Mali, Yves Bissouma was subbed off in the 65th minute of the AFCON qualifier against Eswatini, though his early goal sealed a needed victory for his nation.
Since missing the first game of the season because of an internal suspension, Bissouma has started the following two games which included a stunning goal in the 4-0 win over Everton. In terms of potential replacements, Rodrigo Bentancur seems the most natural option to fill in at the base of midfield.
While Bissouma could yet feature, Arsenal seemingly know that three of their midfielders will miss the game. Summer signing Mikel Merino is injured, Declan Rice is suspended and now Martin Odegaard could be absent after suffering a freak ankle injury on international duty with Norway.
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Early estimates suggest he could be out for at least three weeks which clearly makes it extremely unlikely he plays this weekend. Both Arteta and Postecoglou will hold press conferences later this week and it is undoubtable that injury news will be the big topic.
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