Antonio Conte has revealed that neither Rodrigo Bentancur or Oliver Skipp will be fit to play any part in Tottenham’s trip to play Middlesbrough in the fifth round of the FA Cup on Tuesday night.
Tottenham head to the Riverside stadium looking to avoid the fate of Manchester United, who exited the competition at the hands of the Championship side on penalties in the last round, but will be without four of their first team squad.
Japhet Tanganga and Lucas Moura have joined the midfield pair on the sidelines, with all four having missed Tottenham’s 4-0 win over Leeds United that subsequently saw Marcelo Bielsa sacked by the Yorkshire club.
Conte on team news: “Same squad as we had to face Leeds. No Skipp, Tanganga, Moura or Bentancur.” https://t.co/PSVfXWfnDL
— Alasdair Gold (@AlasdairGold) February 28, 2022
The loss of Bentancur in particular will be keenly felt, given his ability to pick a pass and hold onto the ball, especially given that Spurs are likely to have a lot of the ball against Boro on Tuesday evening.
It is as of yet unclear whether he will be fit enough to return to action in the Premier League next Monday, when his side host struggling Everton.
Dane Scarlett singled out for praise
Meanwhile, Conte was quick to praise 17 year old talent Dane Scarlett, who made his Premier League debut off the bench in their win over Leeds United.
The Italian described the youngster as the ‘best prospect from the academy’ but was quick to shut down any arguments that he was only brought on because of a lack of squad depth.
‘I don’t give gifts to my players’, told the media. ‘If you are a player and you are only 17-years-old, Dane’s working really hard and he is a really good prospect from the academy.’
‘I don’t give gifts to anybody, they have to deserve this opportunity.’
Whether Scarlett has done enough to warrant more minutes in the top flight is another matter.
