Your morning Tottenham Hotspur digest on Thursday, February 9.
Antonio Conte and Tottenham dealt major Hugo Lloris injury blow
Tottenham have been dealt a major blow with Hugo Lloris set to be out for between six to eight weeks through a knee injury. The long-serving goalkeeper sustained ligament damage following a challenge late on in last Sunday's 1-0 win over Man City.
Lloris does not require an operation following the injury but he will now miss some important games coming up for the Lilywhites. His absence will see summer addition Fraser Forster step up and have an extended spell between the sticks.
The ex-Southampton man has made four appearances for Spurs since his move to the club to provide cover for Lloris. With three of those appearances coming in cup competition, the 34-year-old was in goal for the 2-2 Premier League draw with Brentford on Boxing Day as his teammate had only just returned from the World Cup in Qatar after playing in the final for France against Argentina.
Lloris has been in the headlines of late following a couple of high-profile errors in the home defeats against Aston Villa and Arsenal. Bouncing back to help the team to important victories over Fulham and Man City, the shot-stopper's experience and leadership will certainly be a miss over the coming weeks.
Now set to sit out both Champions League Round of 16 fixtures against AC Milan, Lloris will also be absent for the Premier League matches against Leicester City, West Ham, Chelsea, Wolves and Nottingham Forest, as well as the FA Cup fifth round clash at Sheffield United. A return six weeks on from sustaining the injury would see him return on the weekend of Saturday, March 18 when the FA Cup quarter-finals are due to be played.
READ MORE: When Antonio Conte will return and if Tottenham will sign Bastoni and Maddison in the summer
AC Milan dealt injury blow for Tottenham clash as Antonio Conte eyes Champions League advantage
AC Milan have been dealt a major injury blow ahead of their clash with Tottenham in the Champions League round of 16. The Italian giants travel to London for the first leg on February 14.
Antonio Conte's side look set to be at an advantage ahead of the blockbuster clash, with reports from Italy claiming it's 'highly unlikely' that Mike Maignan will feature between the sticks against the north Londoners. The 27-year-old has been on the sidelines since September; he first suffered a calf injury while on international duty with France before sustaining a knock to the soleus muscle a month later, thus forcing him to miss the World Cup in Qatar.
Spurs to miss out on £42.5m sponsorship deal as South Africa agreement scrapped
South Africa has scrapped a proposed sponsorship deal with Tottenham Hotspur. Last week it was reported that conditional approval had been given for South Africa Tourism to tie up a three-year deal worth £42.5million with the football club.
The news of the big-money deal had caused plenty of controversy in South Africa as they believed the money could be better utilised in the country. It had been suggested within the South African sports community that such a large amount of money would be better spent on local sports development.
Amid big question marks over the proposed sponsorship agreement, on Tuesday South Africa's parliament tourism committee called for the deal to be stopped immediately.
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Antonio Conte and Tottenham dealt major Hugo Lloris injury blow
The 9 games Hugo Lloris could miss for Tottenham as Antonio Conte dealt Champions League dilemma
Daniel Levy makes Tottenham transfer claim and reveals why his manager dream is 'very difficult'
Tottenham to miss out on £42.5m sponsorship deal as South Africa agreement scrapped
Tottenham's next five fixtures compared to Arsenal, Man United and Newcastle in top four race
