Tottenham Hotspur are set to be without Pedro Porro for multiple matches in October after the Spanish defender suffered a hamstring injury last weekend.
The World Cup winner was forced off less than 20 minutes into the defeat at home to Aston Villa on Saturday, having just come back into the team after missing the preceding games against Everton and Liverpool.
The body blow has seen the 27-year-old withdraw from the Spain squad for their upcoming UEFA Nations League fixtures, and he’ll also miss some action for his club over the next few weeks.
Porro to miss a month with injury
According to The Athletic on Wednesday afternoon, Porro is expected to be ruled out for a month with his hamstring injury.
It means that he’ll almost certainly miss Spurs’ next match away to Manchester United on 10 October and could also be sidelined for the home game against Coventry nine days later.
However, ‘there is confidence’ that the Spaniard will return in time to face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on 24 October.
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Porro injury adds to the woe for struggling Spurs
The timing of the injury on the eve of the international window has at least minimised the number of matches that Porro will miss for Spurs, but his projected month-long absence still comes as a huge blow for the beleaguered north Londoners.
The reliable Spaniard missed only four Premier League games in the whole of last season – he’ll likely have equalled (maybe even surpassed) that tally before Halloween this time around.
The sight of the 27-year-old at Hotspur Way on Wednesday undergoing rehabilitation work (as shared by the player on Instagram) was encouraging at least, and Roberto De Zerbi has Archie Gray available to immediately fill the void in the starting XI.
Nonetheless, given Spurs’ current predicament – and the ongoing absences of longer-term injury victims like Xavi Simons and Dejan Kulusevski – they could do with having Porro back at the earliest opportunity.
De Zerbi will be praying that everyone in his squad who’s away on international duty will return to Hotspur Way unscathed.
