Tottenham suffer fresh blow as Emerson Royal surgery may keep Brazil defender out for season
Updated 27/03/2023 at 17:26 GMT+1
Tottenham parted ways with manager Antonio Conte at the weekend and they are hunting for a long-term replacement for the Italian, after his controversial press conference outburst. However, Spurs have now suffered a setback with the news that Brazilian defender Emerson Royal has been injured on international duty and could be out for the rest of the season.
Conte leaves Tottenham by mutual consent after criticising club and players
Video credit: SNTV
Tottenham have suffered a fresh blow after it emerged that Emerson Royal is due to have knee surgery.
The right-back was unable to complete Brazil's 2-1 defeat to Morocco in their international friendly on Saturday.
Reports suggest that the player will miss around six weeks, putting in doubt his chances of playing for Tottenham again this season.
The news comes as another setback for Tottenham in their pursuit of finishing in the top four in the Premier League to secure a Champions League spot.
Spurs parted ways with manager Antonio Conte at the weekend after months of speculation that the Italian would not extend his contract this summer. After a controversial outburst to the press, chairman Daniel Levy agreed to part ways with the manager and installed Cristian Stellini as the caretaker boss.
Currently, January transfer window signing Pedro Porro is the only other senior Spurs right-back fit to play, though Japhet Tanganga has some appearances for the first team, and has operated at wing-back before.
Another option would have been Djed Spence, signed from Nottingham Forest in the summer, but he has since been loaned to Ligue 1 side Rennes, and in the same window that Porro arrived, Matt Doherty was allowed to leave to join Atletico Madrid.
The defensive crisis is deepened by Ben Davies’ injury, with the left-back suffering a hamstring issue in the 3-3 draw with Southampton that led to Conte’s inflammatory comments to the press.
Davies’ injury should take five weeks to recover from, and Ryan Sessegnon is out, leaving Croatian wide man Ivan Perisic as the only option on the left of defence. Rodrigo Bentancur is out for the season with a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament injury, and Yves Bissouma is recovering from surgery on an ankle problem.
However, there is some positive news for the club as goalkeeper and captain Hugo Lloris is due to return to first-team action after the conclusion of the international break.
The French veteran played behind closed doors in a friendly against Ipswich last week.
The club have been linked with numerous potential candidates to replace Conte, with former manager Mauricio Pochettino likely a fan favourite, while Julian Nagelsmann could be an option after also leaving his club, Bayern Munich, at the weekend. Sergio Conceicao at Porto has also been mentioned.
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