Ange Postecoglou admits the loss of Son Heung-Min, Yves Bissouma and Pape Sarr to international duty next month will be a “big loss” for Tottenham.
Son is set to feature for South Korea in the Asian Cup, while Bissouma and Sarr will be involved in the African Cup of Nations for Ivory Coast and Senegal respectively.
Speaking at a press conference on Thursday afternoon, Spurs boss Postecoglou said: “All three players will be a big loss. It’s the story of our season. It’s what we’ve been dealt with.”
The ‘story of the season’ for Spurs so far has been the absence of key players, with injuries taking their toll.
“It’s still a challenge,” said Postecoglou, whose team are away to Nottingham Forest on Friday evening.
“We’ve still got eight out injured from the first-team squad – all who contributed to the first team. It’s still a challenge not just in games, but in training as well.
“It’s good to get Pape and Richarlison back last week. It freshens the team. I guess for the foreseeable, it’s kind of where we’re going to be.”
A win at the City Ground would take Spurs level on points with fourth-placed Manchester City, who play Crystal Palace on Saturday.