Jan Paul van Hecke was in too much pain to touch the ball after picking up an injury while representing the Netherlands, Xavi has revealed.
The Tottenham centre-back withdrew from the Dutch squad yesterday having been forced to drop out of training after just seven minutes.
He has been a mainstay for Roberto De Zerbi so far this season, and it remains to be seen whether he will be fit to face Manchester United in the club’s next Premier League match on October 10.
Xavi’s latest update on Van Hecke’s condition is not terribly encouraging, though. Speaking from Greece last night, the Spaniard revealed the defender had been stamped on in last week’s defeat of Serbia.
“During the match against Serbia, someone stepped on him,” the new Netherlands head coach explained.
“He didn’t realise it during the match, but afterwards it was impossible for him to play.
“He really wanted to try, but he was in a lot of pain. That is why we decided to take him off the list.
“He tried to participate in recovery training (on Tuesday). He tried again today, but he couldn’t touch the ball.”
Van Hecke has now returned to Hotspur Way to continue his recovery, and finds himself in a race against time to be passed fit for the trip to Old Trafford.
De Zerbi will issue an update on his condition next week at his pre-match press conference.
Van Hecke joins a number of his team-mates on the treatment table, with Pedro Porro also missing from international duty this month due to a thigh injury. Mykhailo Mudryk, Wilson Odobert and Xavi Simons are also in recovery from longer-term problems.
