Tottenham Hotspur face a defensive shortage on their US tour.
Tottenham Hotspur’s US tour begins against Roma on Thursday morning, but they have already been dealt a major blow less than 48 hours after landing in the States.
Spurs face Roma, Barcelona and Milan in the International Champions Cup, and Mauricio Pochettino will be hoping to get his players fit and firing ahead of the new Premier League season.
However, defender Juan Foyth won’t be a part of the team, as the club have this evening confirmed that he has suffered a thigh injury, ruling him out for the start of the new campaign and the US tour.
Foyth picked up the injury against Brentford on Saturday, and whilst he was named in the squad travelling to the States, he has been pulled out of the tour as he begins his rehabilitation.
For Foyth, this will feel like missing a golden opportunity. Signed for £8million (BBC Sport) last summer having shown promise with Estudiantes in his native Argentina, Foyth was eased into English football last season, and made just eight appearances in all competitions.
This tour represented a huge chance for him though. Jan Vertonghen and Toby Alderweireld aren’t available due to their late World Cup runs, and the same goes for Eric Dier, who has been used as a makeshift centre back when needed.
Davinson Sanchez is included in the squad but he himself played in the World Cup knockout stages and may be rusty, with Foyth scheduled to start for Tottenham given that Cameron Carter-Vickers and TJ Eyoma are the only other recognised centre backs on tour.
Foyth could have shown Pochettino that he is ready for more first-team action, but his injury has robbed him of that opportunity – and he now risks seeing Carter-Vickers or Eyoma step up and grasp his chance instead.
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