Expert: Dejan Kulusevski faces ‘rehab ‘ as Tottenham decision looms large
Dejan Kulusevski will have a huge say in whether he returns for Tottenham against Crystal Palace, but not without a number of tests and assessments clearing him prior to kick-off.
That is the view of medical expert Ben Dinnery, who runs the Premier Injuries site and has a background in injury and data analysis, speaking exclusively to Football Insider.
Spurs felt the absence of Kulusevski last week during their disappointing 2-0 loss to Aston Villa.
The 23-year-old suffered a muscle injury in the lead-up to the Villa clash but is fighting to return for Wednesday night’s match against Crystal Palace.
Antonio Conte stated on Tuesday (3 January) that the decision whether to play or not will ultimately be down to Kulusevski himself, with the Italian saying: “It’s up to the player, because if his feeling is good, is positive, he can start to play. Otherwise, we won’t take a risk.”
Dinnery believes that Kulusevski will lead discussions around his return but insists the Spurs medical team will first put him through his paces with a “battery of tests”.
“Most decisions in regard to return to play are player-led so Kulusevski will remain at the focal point of discussions,” the medical expert told Football Insider’s Sean Fisher.
“There are a lot of reasons behind that – the psychological mindset of the player being one of them.
“You can have players who hit baseline testing and even surpass some of the pre-injury levels in terms of output and metrics.
“They’ve ticked the boxes in theory if they do that, but if a player has a nagging doubt in the back of his mind and doesn’t feel 100% ready or comfortable despite every metric and test clearing them, then it’s always best listening to that player.
“No one knows their body better than the player and this isn’t Kulusevski’s first muscle problem this season so he’ll understand the risks associated.
“The initial setback was touted as a very minor issue but the concern is that he doesn’t want to exacerbate that and stretch a 7-10 day injury into something that could be weeks or months.
“There will still be a battery of tests and a number of assessments and evaluations. It won’t solely come down to his decision. He will be going through rehab protocols which are activity-based.“
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