Soccer

Harry Kane set to make surprise return against Watford

Pochettino says Tottenham striker will at least be on the bench after ankle injury

Harry Kane could make a surprise return to the Spurs side against Watford. Photograph: Julian Finney/Getty

David Hytner
Fri Apr 7 2017 - 14:44

Mauricio Pochettino has revealed Harry Kane is set to make a surprise return for Tottenham Hotspur against Watford on Saturday and the only decision he says he must make is whether to name him as a starter or a substitute.

Kane damaged ankle ligaments in the FA Cup win over Millwall on March 12th and, initially, it was expected that he would be out for six weeks. But the striker has made rapid progress, returning to training this week and being involved in the full session on Friday.

“We’ll see tomorrow if I decide to start him or if he will be on the bench,” Pochettino said. “The good news is he’s ready. He’s fully recovered and that is great news for him and for us. He’s an important player for us and for him to be available again to lead the team is fantastic. I will decide tomorrow but surely he’s good to be involved.

“Harry has pushed himself a lot to be fully recovered and get to 100 per cent. We know what he means to the team. He’s a special player. Of course, he wants to start. He is always desperate to play. He’s always in front of you, pushing you to try to play and score goals. His character is unbelievable.”

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Pochettino faces a selection issue in goal, where Hugo Lloris is fighting to overcome the stomach bug that kept him out of the midweek win at Swansea City and Michel Vorm is out with the knee injury that he suffered during the game.

If Lloris does not make it, Pochettino will hand a debut to Pau López, the Spain Under-21 goalkeeper, who joined on loan from Espanyol last summer. Danny Rose (knee) continues to work towards a return at the end of April while Victor Wanyama (back) is a doubt.

“Why would it be a risk to play Pau?‚Äù Pochettino said. “He is training with us, he is ready to compete. He’s played for our Under-23s and he recently played for Spain’s Under-21s against Denmark and Italy. He’s young but he’s here because we believe in him and trust in him. If Hugo is not ready, he’s a keeper who can cope with the pressure to play without problem.”

(Guardian service)

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