Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino set to gamble on Kazaiah Sterling during injury crisis

MAURICIO POCHETTINO may be forced to turn to a young player who has spent more time standing next to the pitch than actually on it as his injury crisis starts to bite.

Posted Tuesday, January 22, 2019 by Express.co.uk

Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino set to gamble on Kazaiah Sterling during injury crisis
Mauricio Pochettino's squad has been hit by injuries in recent weeks (Image: GETTY)

Lucas Moura faces a race to be fit ahead of the Carabao Cup semi-final second leg with Chelsea on Thursday after missing the last three games with a knee injury.

Dele Alli limped out of the 2-1 win at Fulham on Sunday and will miss the trip to Stamford Bridge, and Spurs will know more tomorrow about just how long he will be sidelined having pulled his hamstring.

But while Pochettino talked about it being an "opportunity" rather than a problem, the reality is that academy striker Kazaiah Sterling is now his only recognised attacking player ready to come in.

The 20-year-old played for just two minutes of the 3-0 Champions League win against Apoel Nicosia in December 2017, having been stripped and ready to come on for eight minutes while Tottenham knocked the ball about Wembley without it ever going out of play.

However, his inclusion on the bench against Fulham confirms that Vincent Janssen, signed for £17m in July 2016 by Pochettino, is persona non grata despite being officially part of Spurs' 25-man Premier League squad.

The 24-year-old Holland international spent last season on loan at Fenerbahce after struggling to adapt to life in the Premier League in his first season.

But since arriving back at the club's Enfield training ground in the summer, he has not been so much as an unused substitute all season.

Tottenham go into a run of vital fixtures in all four competitions over the next 23 days with their four leading goalscorers all currently out of action.

Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino set to gamble on Kazaiah Sterling during injury crisis
Kazaiah Sterling is yet to make a Premier League appearance for Tottenham (Image: GETTY)

Harry Kane, who has scored 14 times in the Premier League this season, is slated in for a return in March after damaging ankle ligaments, while Heung Min Son, with eight goals to his name, could be involved in Asia Cup duty with South Korea until next month.

Add Alli, with five Premier League goals, into the mix and it is no wonder Pochettino is sweating on Moura's return as the Argentina international has provided six additional goals.

Just 14 of Tottenham's 47 goals in the Premier League this season have come from players who are fit at the moment.

Against Fulham, Pochettino gave Fernando Llorente his first start of the season and while the Spain striker did find the back of the net, it was at the wrong end. It means in total, since his £12m signing in August 2017, he has scored as many Premier League goals against Tottenham as he has done for them.

Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino set to gamble on Kazaiah Sterling during injury crisis
20-year-old Kazaiah Sterling was on the bench during the win over Fulham (Image: GETTY)

Nevertheless, thanks to Harry Winks' late goal Tottenham kept their distance above the hard-chasing Manchester United and Arsenal on Sunday and Eric Dier, who is himself only just returning from a bout of appendicitis, said the important thing for Tottenham was not to start feeling sorry for themselves.

"It's not a question of if we can cope without Harry Kane or not," Dier said.

"Harry's one of the best strikers in the world and any team would feel the loss if Harry wasn't playing.

"So we have to find a solution and move on. Injuries happen in football and that's why you have a squad and not just 11 players.

Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino set to gamble on Kazaiah Sterling during injury crisis
Harry Kane's injury against Manchester United has ruled him out for around 6 weeks (Image: GETTY)

"We have injuries; every team gets injuries, we have to deal with it.

"We're not sulking about it or feeling sorry for themselves. We're upset for Harry that he's injured like we're upset for anyone else who's injured – it's never nice for any player – but we have to get on with it.

"Harry will be doing his best to get back as soon as possible and it's down to the team and the squad to rally and carry on."