Tottenham confirm Bentancur ACL injury, surgery

Tottenham Hotspur have officially confirmed what all of us already knew: it will be a long, long time before we see Rodrigo Bentancur play a football match for Spurs again. The club today tweeted confirmation of earlier reports that suggested Lolo was set for a long spell on the sidelines, saying that he will have surgery to repair his ACL injured during Spurs’ 4-1 loss to Leicester this past Saturday, and that he will miss the rest of the season.

I don’t have to belabor this. We know it sucks, and we also know that he (along with fellow injured CM Yves Bissouma) will be greatly missed as one of Spurs’ midfield anchors. But just the same, Lolo’s injury provides an opportunity for both Pape Matar Sarr and Oliver Skipp, two young players who have not been given enough opportunities this season, a chance to step up. We’ll certainly get a good look at both of them tomorrow night at the San Siro, as both are expected to start in the Champions League match against AC Milan due to the suspension of Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg.

At one time, Spurs had a “next man up” policy regarding its depth. That feeling seems to have gone a little by the wayside under Antonio Conte considering the sheer number of long term injuries picked up over the past week. You can sense the supporter unease the way the past week has gone. But there’s nothing to be done for it. Either Tottenham’s depth players step up and Spurs succeed, or they don’t... and they don’t. Either way, as the saying goes, you go to war with the army you have, not the one you wish you had.