Ange reveals Romero faces a month on the sidelines

Cristian Romero is set for around a month on the sidelines with a hamstring strain, Ange Postecoglou has revealed.

The Tottenham defender was substituted at half-time against Everton on Saturday in just his fourth appearance back from a four-match suspension following his red card against Chelsea in November.

Now, this latest blow leaves Spurs with very few natural defenders to pick from ahead of a busy period of games.

Postecoglou said: "Not so great with Romero.

"He had a scan and he's got a hamstring strain. We're looking at four to five weeks with him."

The Australian boss is already without Romero's first-choice partner Micky van de Ven due to a different hamstring issue, with the Dutchman also not due back for a few weeks.

It leaves Eric Dier and Ben Davies as the only senior options who have regularly played in the centre of defence, with 18-year-old Ashley Phillips and Emerson Royal potential alternatives.

Tottenham have games against Brighton, Bournemouth and Burnley to come in the next fortnight, before they host Manchester United in the middle of next month.

They have been plagued by injuries ever since winning eight and drawing two of their first 10 matches of the campaign.

James Maddison, Rodrigo Bentancur and Manor Solomon are all long-term absentees, while Destiny Udogie, Yves Bissouma, Pape Sarr and Richarlison have missed games due to fitness or disciplinary issues.

Bissouma and Sarr will both play at the African Cup of Nations in January, leaving limited options in midfield for the North Londoners.

The club are expected to be active in the transfer window as they aim to patch themselves up for the second half of the season.