Everybody remembers how José Mourinho reacted last January to the diagnosis of Harry Kane’s hamstring tear. It was one of the highlights of the Tottenham Amazon documentary and saw the manager reach a hard and fast conclusion in pithy and colourful language. Three months out? Our season will be impacted beyond repair, to paraphrase Mourinho somewhat.
The first thing to say about Kane’s latest injury setback, which he suffered in Thursday night’s 3-1 home defeat against Liverpool, is that it is surely not as bad. The centre-forward rolled both of his ankles in incidents during the first half and he played on after treatment each time.
Only when he reached the dressing room at the interval and the joints began to feel puffier and sore did he accept defeat and end his involvement. At Southampton on New Year’s Day last year, he had come off immediately, having felt a stab of pain up the back of his leg. He knew that something was badly wrong.
Spurs are not yet in a position to provide an update on Kane’s ankles, with Mourinho having reported post-match that the second twist to the left one was the more serious. He talked of a possible absence of a few weeks, although he could not be sure. Kane has a history of ankle ligament problems, having suffered five lay-offs because of them from 2016-19.
The bottom line is that Kane is unavailable and Mourinho must plan without him, beginning with the trip to Brighton on Sunday and, if there is a difference between this January and the last, there is also an enduring truth. The difference is that, unlike last season, Spurs have specialist No 9 cover. Carlos Vinícius was signed on loan from Benfica last October for this specific scenario. The reality, though, is that Kane is irreplaceable.
“Harry Kane is Harry Kane,” Mourinho said. “There are players in some teams that are not replaceable.”
Does Mourinho trust Vinícius, who was the joint top scorer in last season’s Portuguese league with 18 goals and arrived to no little fanfare? Mourinho said at the end of November that the 25-year-old “needs to be more physical in the Premier League” and he has given him only four brief substitute appearances in the competition, totalling 25 minutes.
It is because he has not needed to play him. When Kane is fit, he is on the field. Even when games are won, he does not want to come off because he believes that he can add to his scoring numbers. Until Thursday night, Kane had played in all but nine minutes of Spurs’s league season. The question about whether his workload is sustainable remains valid. It feels as if managers play him and play him until he breaks down.
But when Mourinho did need a centre-forward for the second half against Liverpool, he moved Son Heung-min into the position and left Vinícius on the bench. Mourinho is on record as saying that he does not really see Son as a No 9. Vinícius has looked good in the Europa League, scoring three goals, and he got a hat-trick in the FA Cup tie against Marine. The league is a different level.
One consequence of Kane’s injury is that the club could be even more reluctant to allow the want-away Dele Alli to join Paris St-Germain on loan. Alli can provide an option up front, although ideally in an attacking pair. Mourinho is happy to move the player on, although he would want a replacement, which is proving difficult and his frustration over the impasse is mounting. Never mind that Mourinho got what he wanted in last summer’s transfer market – much more than most people expected him to get, in the shape of seven signings. He is not getting what he wants now.
Spurs were terrible in the second half against Liverpool, with Kane’s ability to link the play and spring teammates forward – particularly Son – missed almost as much as his threat in front of goal.
One final thought occurs. Could this be a moment for Gareth Bale to become a more fundamental part of the team? The fact that it is a final thought is probably instructive. Bale has failed to find any rhythm or intensity on his return to the club, with fitness issues not helping.
“It is a crucial moment for him,” Mourinho said. “He is feeling better and better. And of course when you lose a player of Harry’s quality and dimension, the other guys have to step up. Hopefully he can help us. How far is Gareth from top physical condition? I don’t know. It is something I cannot answer.”