Tottenham Hotspur boss Antonio Conte has hinted that defender Emerson Royal may not be fit to feature in the club’s meeting with Chelsea this weekend.
Brazilian international Emerson was of course part of Spurs’ latest starting XI, taking his place on the right of the aforementioned Conte’s back-5 for the club’s Premier League clash with Leicester City on Wednesday night.
The Lilywhites, for their part, went on to secure all three points at the King Power Stadium, courtesy of the latest of late shows imaginable on the part of surprise hero Steven Bergwijn:
Did Steven Bergwijn produce the best ever substitute appearance in Premier League history last night? ?
If not, let us know who you think beats him…?pic.twitter.com/lVo87uIZhd
— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) January 20, 2022
Whilst Bergwijn went on to steal the headlines, though, Emerson, on the other hand, came in for heavy criticism once more, owing to yet another sub-par showing which ultimately culminated in his withdrawal from proceedings after just 45 minutes.
In turn, speaking during his pre-Chelsea press conference on Friday, Antonio Conte was inevitably drawn on the situation of his struggling wing-back.
And the Spurs boss went on to reveal that, in fact, Emerson’s early departure at the King Power came as a result of a fitness problem, with Matt Doherty therefore in line to replace the 22-year-old at Stamford Bridge on Sunday, if required:
Doherty could replace Royal if he fails to recover. “About Emerson, I must be very clear that he started the [LCFC] game with a physical problem. I can only thank him for his availability,” confirmed Conte. “He was suffering a lot in the 1st half. He is only 22-years-old.” #COYS
— Ben Dinnery (@BenDinnery) January 21, 2022
Hunting Chelsea
Tottenham will make the trip to capital rivals Chelsea in two days’ time in the knowledge that a victory would position them superbly to overtake Thomas Tuchel’s faltering troops in the Premier League table.
Amid a run of just two points secured from an available twelve over recent weeks, the Blues have slipped a full twelve points off the pace of table-topping Manchester City in the English top-flight.
Not only that, but Spurs sit just eight points back of Chelsea, whilst boasting a whopping four games in hand.
A triumph at Stamford Bridge this weekend, in turn, would see Conte and co. secure not only front-runner status for the top-4, but to slot into 3rd behind just Man City and Liverpool, too.
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