View: West Ham handed Tottenham boost after injury news emerges on Monday
West Ham have been handed a huge boost ahead of their Premier League clash against Tottenham with Rodrigo Bentancur ruled out for the remainder of the season.
Tottenham confirmed on Monday (13 February) that the Uruguay midfielder ruptured the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee during Saturday’s (11 February) Premier League clash against Leicester.
Bentancur has been a key player for Spurs this season, starting all but two of the club’s games before the World Cup.
He has struggled for fitness since returning from Qatar, making only four league appearances before picking up his latest injury.
Bentancur was Antonio Conte’s first signing at Spurs and his absence, tied with Yves Bissouma’s injury issues, leaves Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, Oliver Skipp and Pape Matar Sarr as the only senior midfield options available to the Italian.
Spurs confirmed on 9 February that Bissouma will go under the knife to fix a stress fracture in his ankle, almost certainly ruling him out for months.
It’s never nice to see players ruled out for several months but looking at it from West Ham’s point of view, Tottenham losing one of their best players in the same week they are due to play the Hammers is a huge blow.
Partnered with Bissouma’s absence, it gives David Moyes the chance to select a team that can control the midfield and, in turn, dictate the pace of the game.
This could be key against a Tottenham side that will be lacking in confidence after an embarrassing 4-1 loss to Leicester.
The other aspect of Bentancur’s game, which has gone under the radar, is his goalscoring threat.
Before joining Spurs, the 25-year-old has only ever scored four career goals. This season he already has six, with the most recent coming in that 4-1 loss to Leicester.
He is the club’s third-top scorer this season behind Harry Kane and Heung-Min Son, so the Hammers’ defence can breathe slightly easier too.
These injury issues are unfortunate for Tottenham but West Ham can only look to exploit an opportunity that has fallen into their lap.
The club are not in a position to look gift horses in the mouth.