Tottenham’s Harry Kane to Wear a Mask
Tottenham striker, Harry Kane, is the latest player to suffer an injury this season. Leading up to Spurs next game, Kane will sport a protective mask to prevent further damage.
According to The Telegraph’s Matt Law, Harry Kane appeared to suffer a broken nose during Tottenham’s 1-0 loss to Crystal Palace in the FA Cup this past Sunday. The injury occured when Kane took an elbow to his face.
At the time though, it didn’t seem as if Harry Kane suffered a break as he wasn’t taken off during the game and played the full 90 minutes with no effects. However, after the game ended, scans did in fact show that Kane broke his nose.
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So what does this mean for Harry Kane and Tottenham?
It’s simple. Mauricio Pochettino will continue to play the 22-year-old striker in order to help Spurs secure a Champions League spot and a chance at a Premier League title.
As of right now, Tottenham already have a mask ready for Kane to use when he plays in Spurs’ next game. Though it might not be against Fiorentina this Thursday with Pochettino likely to give the England international a couple more days to heal and rest.
Or at the very least, not start the game but instead come on during the second half.
This would mean that Mauricio Pochettino will rely on Son Heung-Min and/or Nacer Chadli to play as the lone striker against the Viola in the Europa League and will take his chances that Tottenham can get past the Italian club to reach the round of 16 without the help of their only true out-and-out striker.
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With a crucial three games in seven days in the Premier League against Swansea City, West Ham United and Arsenal, it’s imperative that Kane doesn’t start, let alone plays, against Fiorentina.
It lowers Spurs’ chances of winning by a considerable amount with the Lilywhites holding a slim lead based on away goals in a 1-1 aggregate draw.
But should Fiorentina knock out Tottenham once again in back-to-back years in the round of 32, the main focus for Mauricio Pochettino and his squad will revert back to the Premiership which was always the main objective when the season started.
The current run in Europe and reaching the fifth round in the FA Cup are great signs that Tottenham are able to get far in both competitions while taking care of business in the Premier League as well.
But getting second place in England’s top-flight division was mainly down to other top clubs’ forms being very inconsistent or just downright bad. Not to mention that Harry Kane has scored the second-highest goals in the Premiership with 16 this term.
Other players have helped contribute to Tottenham’s success as well: Dele Alli, Hugo Lloris, Jan Vertonghen and Toby Alderweireld to name a few. But without Harry Kane (read: suffering a major injury) Tottenham would be in deep trouble.
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This means that it’s entirely possible that Pochettino would rather risk his team’s chances at bowing out of another competition in order to focus on the bigger picture — the Premier League — and succeeding.
Harry Kane’s protective mask will ensure that the English striker is able to continue playing. But Tottenham are very fortunate that the only major injury that the 22-year-old has suffered this season is a broken nose and not something much worse.