Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou could be forced to dip into the transfer market in January for a new defender with one of his key players facing a lengthy spell on the sidelines. The Spurs boss suffered a damaging first defeat of his reign as they fell to a 4-1 home loss to Chelsea with nine men, following the double dismissal of Cristian Romero and Destiny Udogie. But Postecoglou has a bigger problem than losing the pair to suspension after centre-back Micky van de Ven was ruled out.
The Dutchman collapsed to the floor with a painful hamstring injury after chasing a ball towards his goal and needed to be helped off the pitch by Tottenham’s medical team. That appeared to show his hamstring injury may be worse than a strain or pulled muscle, with the 22-year-old now facing a long period on the sidelines.
He is expected to undergo a scan on the injury to determine the extent of his injury, although the £43m summer signing was seen at the club’s training ground ahead of their weekend clash against Wolves. In the case of it being bad news, Postecoglou has already lined up his top target to provide some cover at the back.
Bournemouth defender Lloyd Kelly was targeted by the club this summer and they could now revive their interest ahead of a swoop in January, according to The Standard.
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The Englishman emerged as a potential option this summer before Spurs moved onto other players such as Van de Ven. But his injury has exposed the lack of cover at the heart of defence and the north London club’s interest will come as no surprise, particularly with Eric Dier facing an uncertain future at the club.
There are also doubts as to whether Ashley Phillips, 18, is ready for first-team football following his move from Blackburn, with the youngster needing to develop his game and is regarded as a long-term option.
Kelly should be available for a cut-price fee, with the 25-year-old out of contract at the end of the season and looking increasingly unlikely to sign a contract extension at the Vitality Stadium. The left-footed defender also has experience of playing at left-back, giving them an option if Udogie or Ben Davies are unavailable.
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Spurs coach Matt Wells, who is in charge of working with the club’s defensive players, is thought to be a fan of Kelly’s after the pair worked together at Bournemouth when he assistant to Scott Parker.
As a former England Under-21 international, Kelly would help to fulfil the the club’s homegrown quota and may also accept being a squad player before trying to earn his place in Postecoglou’s side next season.
New Spurs technical director Johan Lange and chief scout Rob Mackenzie will be put to work with Postecoglou on finding players in January, although the Australian has the final say on all new signings.
In the meantime, he could turn to Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg to deputise at centre-back alongside Dier after the Dane’s excellent cameo against Chelsea, with Romero definitely ruled out and Van de Ven likely to miss the clash.
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