Tottenham Hotspur have so much to prove on Sunday when they face bitter rivals Arsenal in the North London Derby, and whlie they could benefit from the absence of star center back Gabriel Magalhaes, who recently suffered an injury for the Brazil national team, Spurs now have another injury to worry about of their own, too.
It's a real injury crisis for Spurs. They already were carrying big absences in James Maddison, Dejan Kulusevski, and Dominic Solanke in the attack. And then on the Saturday before the November international break, striker Randal Kolo Muani went down with a jaw injury in the first half vs. Manchester United.
Archie Gray is injured in midfield, as is an even more important young midfielder in Lucas Bergvall, who could be out against Arsenal with a concussion. And to make matters worse in that same friendly between Brazil and Senegal, breakout star midfielder Pape Matar Sarr became the latest Spurs injury casualty as he left the pitch with an unspecified injury from Senegal's tough 2-0 loss.
Tottenham need the veterans to step it up
Sarr has been a key player for Spurs this season whenever he has actually played, and given his motor and all-around work rate in midfield as a true No. 8, losing him as an option to neutralize the world-class Arsenal midfield axis of Martin Zubimendi and Declan Rice is huge.
Overall, Tottenham have to like the trade between Gabriel and Martin Odegaard being new injuries for Arsenal vs. Spurs now having Bergvall and Sarr issues to worry about, but the Sarr injury is just a reminder of how cursed Spurs are right now and makes it that much more difficult for them to score an upset three points over Arsenal.
The Premier League leaders, Arsenal will be overwhelming favorites again on Sunday against Spurs, and now fans need to see Joao Palhinha and Rodrigo Bentancur really step it up for potentially 90 minutes together in lieu of the best options being able to come in. Sarr would have been a preferred starter for Bentancur, but if he can't start or play at 100 percent against Arsenal, then that option is now out the window for Frank to work with.
Rice has been ridiculously good this season, and Zubimendi has been about as impactful for Arsenal as Mohammed Kudus has been for Tottenham. This Arsenal midfield is legit, and with Sarr now hurt, the injury crisis for Spurs could prove costly in the North London Derby.