Tottenham Hotspur stunned Manchester City by defeating them 2-1 in the Carabao Cup to reach the quarter-finals of the competition.
Timo Werner netted his first of the season before Pape Matar Sarr’s superb strike sealed the win and set up a last-eight clash at home to Manchester United.
However, a nasty-looking hamstring injury suffered by Micky van de Ven put a slight dampener on things as the Dutch defender was forced off after just 14 minutes.
The 23-year-old picked up the injury when making a challenge and had to be replaced by Destiny Udogie early on into the tie. Tottenham will now be awaiting the verdict on his injury.
In the meantime, Van de Ven’s injury will likely alter their transfer plans for January and may force their hand into accelerating certain deals.
How Micky van de Ven’s injury could impact Tottenham’s transfers
Van de Ven could be set for a lengthy spell on the sidelines which should force Tottenham into accelerating plans to bring in a new defender.
The North London club are in desperate need of left-sided defenders with very little cover for both Van de Ven and Udogie. Djed Spence is an option, however, he is more of a right-sided player and Ben Davies now appears to be just an option for centre-back.
Van de Ven was only playing to finally hand Udogie a break with the Italian having featured in all but one of Spurs’ 14 matches this season. The club left Ange Postecoglou’s squad very short in defence with very little over for certain areas and this must change in January.
Even in the Carabao Cup, Davies is no longer a trusted starter, so in reality, Cristian Romero and Radu Dragusin are Tottenham’s only other centre-back options – that must change. Meanwhile, as shown against City, Van de Ven is Postecoglou’s alternative to Udogie highlighting just how threadbear his defensive options have become.
Tottenham should return for Piero Hincapie
Tottenham need to go and sign another elite defender and that player could be Bayer Leverkusen’s Piero Hincapie. The North London club have previously had the centre-back as a target, as per The Sun, and now is the time to firm up their interest and bring him to North London.
This would certainly be an ambitious move for a player who is key for a top club like Leverkusen but this is the level of player they should be after. The 22-year-old would also be a solid addition as he can also play as a left-back and it would kill two birds with one stone.
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