Confirmed: Key Tottenham man to be out for at least two months

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Published on:

30 Jun 2016, 12:40 pm

By London correspondent Tony Hughes

Jan Vertonghen will be sidelined for at least two months with torn ankle ligaments, according to Belgium manager Marc Wilmots.

Belgian broadcaster RTBF claimed earlier on Thursday that the Tottenham defender had damaged ankle ligaments in training as Belgium made final preparations for Friday night's Euro 2016 quarter-final against Wales.

This was later confirmed by Wilmots at the team's pre-match press conference in Lille on Thursday night.

RTBF reported that Vertonghen could be sidelined for four months but Wilmots told journalists that Vertonghen will be absent for six to eight weeks even though he has damaged two of his ankle ligaments.

This was reported by HLN correspondent Kristof Terreur on his personal Twitter account.

Jan Vertonghen underwent a scan in Lille. 1st diagnosis: Ligament damage. Expected to be out +/- 6 weeks. #bel #thfc pic.twitter.com/Xooo0O4GUK
— Kristof Terreur (@kristofterreur) June 30, 2016

Marc Wilmots confirms that two of Vertonghen's ankle ligaments are damaged. #thfc
— Kristof Terreur (@kristofterreur) June 30, 2016

The versatile defender has flown with the Belgium squad to Lille ahead of the Wales showdown but he is out of the tournament and Spurs now face a nervous wait to find out how serious the injury will be.

Vertonghen would be sidelined until November if the four-month prognosis is correct, which would be a devastating blow for Tottenham.

The 28-year-old missed three months of the 2015-16 season after damaging his knee ligaments in January and, although Spurs coped well in his absence, Mauricio Pochettino demonstrated his faith in the centre-back by immediately reinstating him in the team when he was fit.

Such a serious Tottenham injury could have an effect on Spurs' summer transfer plans.

Vertonghen is one of only three senior centre-backs at the club, along with countryman Toby Alderweireld and Kevin Wimmer, and the north Londoners were already in the market for a new defender.

As reported by Football Insider, Argentina international Federico Fazio is set to be offloaded this summer.

Tottenham Hotspur

Jan Vertonghen