Micky van de Ven appeared to pick up an injury during the early stages of Tottenham's Carabao Cup clash against Manchester City(Image: (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images))

Tottenham handed major Micky van de Ven injury scare vs Man City

30 Oct 2024, 20:39 by Kieran Horn · football.london

Tottenham have been rocked by a potentially major Micky van de Ven injury blow with the defender forced off against Manchester City in the Carabao Cup.

The Netherlands international was starting at left-back at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium for the visit of Man City but his evening lasted just 13 minutes and handed Spurs a major concern just moments after Timo Werner had put the hosts in front.

In a challenge with Savinho, Van de Ven immediately clutched at his right hamstring after winning the ball with a sliding tackle. Physios treated Van de Ven but the decision was quickly made by Ange Postecoglou for him to come off with Destiny Udogie subbed on in his place.

It was certainly a surprise to see him start at full-back given Postecoglou's warnings in the past when asked why he did not use him in that position more often. “I’ve been mindful of Micky," Postecoglou said after utilising him at left back for the final 30 minutes of a win against Burnley.

"He’s had a couple of injuries and I’ve got to be careful with him when it comes to the demands of playing left-back in our system. I’ve got to think about the future and the physical demands are different at left-back." Based on that claim, it was clearly a risk to deploy him in that position with Spurs likely to feel the effects in the coming weeks.

In terms of replacements going forward, Radu Dragusin will likely get the nod alongside Cristian Romero if Van de Ven misses out. A start for Djed Spence or Ben Davies could also be on the horizon with Postecoglou again having to turn to Udogie in games the Spurs boss seemingly wants to rest the Italy international.

Despite the potentially major blow, Spurs scored again before half time with Pape Matar Sarr curling an effort from the edge of the box into the corner after a short corner routine. However, some early hope has been provided with Van de Ven captured back out in the dugout just 30 minutes after being taken off

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