Tottenham Hotspur have announced that midfielder Moussa Sissoko has undergone knee surgery to repair the medial collateral ligament in his right leg. The injury will see the Frenchman sidelined until early April.
Moussa Sissoko Undergoes Knee Surgery
A Lengthy Spell on the Sidelines
Despite completing the full 90 minutes, Sissoko picked up the knee injury during the New Year’s Day defeat to Southampton. The game saw club-record signing Tanguy Ndombele and Harry Kane also fall victim to injuries.
In a statement, Spurs announced: “Following a clinical assessment and scans, Moussa Sissoko has today [Tuesday] undergone surgery to the medial collateral ligament in his right knee.
“Our medical staff will monitor Moussa’s recovery before he commences rehabilitation, with a view to returning to training in early April.”
Sissoko’s knee surgery will see him join a growing list of sidelined players, which includes captain Hugo Lloris and defenders Ben Davies and Danny Rose. The Frenchman is set to miss Tottenham’s Champions League fixtures against RB Leipzig but will be hopeful of returning in time to be selected for France’s EURO 2020 squad.
A New Midfield Headache for Jose Mourinho
Jose Mourinho’s midfield choices are slowly dwindling, and at a period where the fixtures toughen for Spurs, this is hardly ideal. With Sissoko out of the question until April, the Portuguese is starting to have a midfield dilemma.
Ndombele has shown at times why the club made him a record signing, but his season has been stop-start. Plagued by a series of groin injuries, and a lack of match sharpness has seen his minutes vary extremely. On top of that, the Frenchman was forced off with a hip problem in the defeat to Southampton, an injury which caused Mourinho to voice his frustrations that the midfielder is “always injured”.
English midfielder Harry Winks has recently fallen out of favour, but Sissoko’s absence could see him return back into the starting line-up. Mourinho could additionally turn to Eric Dier, who has been reintegrated back into the midfield following the Portuguese’s appointment. Dier, who started in central defence in the draw against Middlesbrough, will likely return to normal midfield surroundings to bolster numbers in the middle.
A peripheral figure in Oliver Skipp could start to become more prevalent in the Tottenham squad. The 19-year-old’s breakthrough last season has seen him land a place with the first team, but appearances have been a rarity. He has yet to start for Spurs this season and has only made a handful of substitute appearances. Inevitable rotation in the middle, however, could see the youngster earn more minutes.
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