Igor Tudor confirms potential significant North London Derby absence

Dominic Solanke's potential North London Derby absence because of a sore throat may seem rather comical, but the Tottenham striker won't be the first or last to miss a game due to the ailment.

Kylian Mbappé, Wayne Rooney, Scott McTominay and even Lionel Messi have all sat themselves out of games due to throat trouble, and us mere mortals are well aware of such discomfort.

It's the timing that's far from ideal. Tottenham are in the midst of an availability crisis and barely have 11 fit senior players to put a team together for Sunday's derby. Wilson Odobert was the latest to succumb on what thankfully proved to be Thomas Frank's final game in charge, and we're going to be without the promising young French winger for much of 2026 due to an ACL tear.

Igor Tudor is an expert firefighter, but he's no miracle worker. He doesn't expect any players to be return from injury this weekend, and now there are doubts over his starting striker.

Solanke a doubt for North London Derby due to throat issue

The no-nonsense Tudor spoke candidly at his first press conference on Friday, endearing himself to reporters and journalists in attendance by shaking of each their hands before proceedings got underway.

The 47-year-old is well aware of the job at hand, and has no expectation to stay beyond the end of the season. His job is to preserve Spurs' Premier League status, and has already guaranteed that he'll achieve that objective. I believe him.

His tenure starts with the visit of our fiercest rivals and floundering league leaders Arsenal. The Gunners have won six of the seven previous derbies, and they produced a thumping 4-1 victory in last November's reverse fixture.

Arsenal currently aren't performing like champions, and Wolves' spirited fightback on Wednesday night should embolden the group of players at Tudor's disposal. However, the Croatian needs all the help he can get, and Solanke being fit is really important.

"Solanke has some problem with his throat but he made two days training," the manager confirmed on Friday (via Alasdair Gold). He hasn't ruled the striker out, but it would seem as if his preparation for Sunday's mammoth clash has been sub-optimal.

While Tudor has been a 3-4-2-1 man for much of his managerial career, I don't think that configuration will prove most effective considering the players he has available. I like the idea of Solanke working in tandem with Randal Kolo Muani, who impressed under Tudor at Juventus last season.

However, if Solanke's extra poorly and even Strepsils don't sort him out, then Kolo Muani will likely lead the line on his own. Mathys Tel should the come into consideration, or one of Pape Matar Sarr/Conor Gallagher could move into the front three.

Let's see.