Ange Postecoglou has stated that Tottenham Hotspur will be without Richarlison this weekend. Newcastle United will host the Lilywhites at St James’ Park on Saturday afternoon, with both sides hoping to climb the Premier League table.
Spurs will be looking to build on their three-game unbeaten run in the English Premier League, which began with a 3-1 victory over Nottingham Forest. With Champions League qualifying on the line, the north London club in fourth place is only three goals ahead of Aston Villa in fifth.
Tottenham also has a game in hand, which might be vital in May. The Magpies are only two points behind Manchester United in the race for Europa League football; a win may rocket them up the table, while a failure might all but crush their chances of a top six finish.
Nonetheless, the Lilywhites have suffered a significant injury blow ahead of the match at St James’ Park. Speaking to press on Friday afternoon, Postecoglou revealed that Richarlison would miss the match owing to an injury.
“Yeah, he’ll miss this week,” said the Spurs boss. “He is close but with the weekend off next week, we feel and with the last two rounds stacked with games for us, we feel having him ready for that is more important, but he’s progressing quite well.”
Postecoglou was then quizzed on the Premier League run-in. The 58-year-old said: “I think they’re all tough. I’d be very surprised if anyone has an easy game. We certainly didn’t think it was easy against Forest, who were fighting for their lives, or Luton, or West Ham.
“I think every game, I think Saturday, we’ve got seven tough games to go, I think every team’s got tough games, just about every club’s got something to play for. I don’t think it’s about ladder positions right now.
“It’s about knowing that you’re going into a game on the weekend against an opponent who’ll be determined to gain something for themselves and we’ve got to gain something from that.”
Tottenham will be missing Richarlison this weekend, as well as Manor Soloman, Fraser Forster, and Ryan Sessegnon. Newcastle could be without nine players due to injuries, including Sandro Tonali, who is still serving a lengthy ban.
Regarding Joe Willock, Howe said: “Joe has been to see another specialist to check on the progress of his Achilles which has been problematic for him. It’s been a difficult injury as there has been a few complications.
“The feedback was positive generally in respect that it is healing. But it will fluctuate from time to time. There will be moments it won’t feel so good. For Tottenham, I probably think he won’t be available.
“There’s a chance he will be available for the rest of the season but that is unclear. We need to make sure the long-term prognosis is positive and that might mean a short period of rest.”
Then, on Joelinton, the Newcastle boss added: “I think Joe will tell you yes [that he will back before the season’s end]. But we need to make sure that he is ready to play. We can’t rush the process. He has to be feeling good and we have to minimise risk.”
And on Lewis Hall, Howe said: “[Lewis Hall has] tightness in his quad. No muscle pull directly but enough to see him miss training this week. He’s a doubt for the game.”
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