The injury to James Maddison has proved to be worse than initially expected. The Tottenham star suffered an ankle injury in the 4-1 defeat to Chelsea and will be out until the next year.
He dedicated a message to Spurs fans on X: "The rollercoaster that is football unfortunately. Will need a period of time away from the pitch to get this one right. See you in the new year Spurs fans, I’ll be back better & stronger for sure, promise you that 🤝🤍"
Maddison is one of Spurs' best players this season and the team's creativity hub, with three goals and five assists in 11 games. His injury is a huge blow and it was already felt in the most recent 2-1 away defeat to Wolves.
But if only Tottenham's woes ended at that. Centre-back Mickey van de Ven is also out until 2024 - the Dutch defender is crucial to Spurs building up from the back.
In addition, Cristian Romero is still serving a suspension and will miss the upcoming games against Aston Villa and Man City. And if this wasn't enough, Yves Bissouma got his fifth yellow card against Wolves and will be suspended for the Villa clash.
Suddenly, the sweet honeymoon turns into a 70% absinthe hangover. It really is a testing time for Ange Postecoglou.
