Tottenham Hotspur are braced to be without Jan Vertonghen for up to two months after the Belgium defender underwent scans on the ankle ligament injury sustained in Saturday’s thrashing of West Bromwich Albion.
The tests on the joint revealed a tear lying between grades two and three, damage which had left Vertonghen in tears as he departed the turf at White Hart Lane and would normally rule him out at the very least until mid-March. Rehabilitation will begin once the swelling has receded on the left ankle and Mauricio Pochettino is preparing for life without the influential defender.
Spurs have found their best form of the season over recent weeks, winning seven matches in succession in all competitions to rise to second in the Premier League table. The adaptable and dependable Vertonghen has been a key element in that and is distraught at the timing of the injury. At the same stage last year he injured medial knee ligaments, having been elbowed in the face by Crystal Palace’s Connor Wickham, and was ruled out for over 11 weeks at a critical stage of the season.
This time he will sit out of Saturday’s trip to Manchester City, as well as the game at Liverpool in mid-February and the Europa League tie with the Belgian club Gent next month. Tottenham have utilised a back three over recent weeks and Vertonghen’s absence may see either Kevin Wimmer or Ben Davies, who plays in that system with Wales, drafted in alongside Eric Dier and Toby Alderweireld across the backline.

City’s Sagna fined £40,000 over referee comment
Manchester City defender Bacary Sagna was fined £40,000 ($49,439, 46,214 euros) and warned about his future conduct by the Football Association yesterday after making an Instagram post that questioned referee Lee Mason’s impartiality.
Sagna, 32, posted a photo with the caption “10 against 12 but still fighting and winning as a team” on the social network following City’s 2-1 victory against Burnley on January 2.
Sagna later revised the post to read “still fighting and winning as a team” after a clash that saw Mason send off City midfielder Fernandinho. France defender Sagna was charged with misconduct over the post last Tuesday and has now been punished by the FA, English football’s governing body.

FA examine retrospective diving ban: Report
Players in English football found guilty of diving could face retrospective bans from the Football Association, The Times newspaper reported yesterday. In neighbouring Scotland, players can receive a two-match ban if they are found to have won a significant advantage for their team by tricking the referee by diving or simulation.
If the referee or match officials did not spot the diving at the time of the incident, offending players can still be punished by video replay and then banned. The Times reported the FA are set to send a delegation to Scotland to study the rule.
“On the face of it it’s a good idea,” an ‘FA insider’ told The Times.”The devil is in the detail, but as a tool to penalise blatant simulation versus ‘did he dive or slip?’ it is now being investigated. It is being discussed with the SFA (Scottish Football Association) and some FA people are going up to Scotland for a meeting on how it is working.”
The SFA’s rule on diving, in operation since 2011, makes it an offence for a player to mislead a match official to gain a substantial advantage. SFA chief Stewart Regan told The Times: “Having that rule there is helping the game and reducing the acts of simulation, which we know are frustrating for fans and players, and can be game-changing.”

Leicester manager Ranieri hopes Chelsea win title
Leicester City manager Claudio Ranieri is hoping fellow Italian Antonio Conte wins the English Premier League title with current leaders Chelsea. Ranieri led Leicester to a shock triumph in the competition last year but they are languishing 15th in the 20-team standings, 31 points adrift of his former club.
“As former Chelsea coach and as an Italian supporter, I hope that Conte can achieve the goal,” Ranieri told reporters in Florence ahead of the Italian Hall of Fame. “(Conte) came without uproar but demonstrated that the Italian school of coaches is valid more than ever,” he added.
Ranieri, who led Leicester to the English title for the first time in their history, is contracted to the midlands club until 2020 but he is not sure about his future.


Related Story