Rodrigo Bentancur has returned to Tottenham training

There hasn’t been a ton of good news regarding Tottenham Hotspur’s injury crisis lately, so when some does come around it’s important to highlight it. And there’s some very good news today! According to Alasdair Gold, Rodrigo Bentancur has returned to full training with Tottenham ahead of schedule!

Lolo had suffered a torn ankle ligament at the beginning of December after being injured by Aston Villa defender Matty Cash, and was expected to be out for two months. The fact that he’s recovered not even a full month later is amazing, and fantastic, and as Gold says could have an impact on what Spurs do in the January transfer window.

Spurs are without Yves Bissouma and Pape Sarr for probably the entire month of January as they depart to participate in the African Cup of Nations with their countries and that leaves Spurs a bit shorthanded in central midfield. The suggestion was that in addition to a central defender Spurs might look at bringing in a midfielder to supplement the squad at the beginning part of the calendar year. Getting Lolo back would be a massive boost and might mean they won’t have to do that.

That said, I wouldn’t expect Bentancur to slot straight back into the starting lineup. Spurs have tended to be very cautious about reintegrating players after returning from injury — the best example of that is Bentancur himself after returning from his ACL injury a year ago. I expect we’ll see that — a week or so of training, then some substitution minutes or half games until he gets back up to speed and feels more confident on that ankle.

But regardless — it’s good news. Let’s celebrate it!

UPDATE: Remember five minutes ago when I said I doubt Bentancur would go straight into the starting lineup? Well, ignore that because he’s apparently starting today…!!