Tottenham Hotspur manager Ange Postecoglou has confirmed that he expects Dejan Kulusevski to be out for a "few months" after the Swedish attacker underwent surgery on a knee injury.
The former Juventus man was forced off in the first half of last weekend's 2-0 Premier League home loss to Crystal Palace, although there were no fears of a serious problem at the time.
However, it subsequently emerged that Kulusevski had done severe damage to his knee, and Spurs confirmed on Wednesday that he had gone under the knife and would miss the rest of the season.
Kulusevski will therefore be watching on helplessly when Tottenham face Manchester United in next week's Europa League final, as well as their final two Premier League fixtures against Aston Villa and Brighton & Hove Albion.
Addressing the media in Thursday's press conference ahead of Friday's trip to Villa, Postecoglou spoke for the first time since Kulusevski's operation and revealed an anticipated timeline for the 25-year-old's recovery.
Postecoglou confirms Kulusevski out for "a few months" as new problem revealed
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"Initially we thought it wasn't too serious but it blew up the day after. He's had the surgery which will put him out for at least a few months," football.london quotes Postecoglou as saying.
However, the Australian did not rule out the prospect of the Scandinavian winger being fit for the start of next season, adding: "We'll see. We've only got basic information at the moment."
Kulusevski is one of three Tottenham creators in the care of the medical team, as James Maddison (knee) and Lucas Bergvall (ankle) will also not play again until the early stages of the 2025-26 season.
Furthermore, Postecoglou confirmed a new injury to his side on Thursday, revealing that RB Leipzig loanee Timo Werner was managing a hamstring problem of unspecified severity.
"He's injured, he's got a hamstring injury," Postecoglou said when asked about the absence of Werner, who has not played for Tottenham since the 1-0 home defeat to Manchester City in late February.
Son Heung-min update delivered before Aston Villa clash
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On a brighter note, Son Heung-min was a second-half substitute in the home loss to Palace last weekend, making his first appearance for the Lilywhites in eight games after a foot injury.
Son could be forced to shoulder more of the creative burden with Kulusevski, Bergvall and Maddison absent, but Postecoglou did not guarantee that he would start at Villa Park.
"He'll definitely play tomorrow. Whether he'll start or not we'll see. He reacted well to Sunday and it makes sense to get him more match minutes whether it's starting or playing half of the game," he added.
Tottenham could be condemned to a 17th-placed finish in the Premier League table with defeat on Friday, as Europa League final opponents Man United are one point better off in 16th place before their battle with Chelsea.
Ben Knapton
