Tottenham Hotspur could be without one of their most important players for the North London derby against Arsenal in three weeks.
Tottenham’s injury list continues to grow, with the likes of Pedro Porro, Kevin Danso and Djed Spence becoming among the latest to join their teammates on the treatment table.
Thankfully for the Lilywhites, Thomas Frank has said that Micky van de Ven and Djed Spence could both return very soon, potentially even for the club’s clash at Old Trafford next week.
However, the North Londoners could still lose another key defender due to a suspension within the next few weeks.
Tottenham’s Cristian Romero is nearing a suspension
Romero has already served two suspensions this season, once for accumulating five yellow cards and another for receiving a red card against Liverpool.
The Tottenham Hotspur star is now on eight yellow cards, which means he is coming dangerously close to another suspension.
Premier League rules state that players who accumulate double-digit bookings on or before the 32nd league fixture have to serve a two-match suspension.
That means that if the Spurs captain picks up a yellow against Manchester United and against Newcastle, he will have to sit out the North London derby on February 22nd, as well as the London derby against Fulham on March 1.
Why Spurs now desperately need Romero for the North London derby
Kevin Danso has proven to be more than an able deputy for Romero and Van de Ven this season, with the Austrian hardly putting a foot wrong whenever he has played.
However, Spurs are still waiting for confirmation on how long Danso will be out injured for after the centre-back hyperextended his big toe.
Tottenham thus cannot lose Romero to a suspension for the NLD, as it would be far from ideal for Radu Dragusin to start that game, given that the Romanian has barely played any football over the last 12 months.