TOTTENHAM HAVE CONFIRMED the dying moments of their recent defeat at Manchester United have delivered a devastating blow, as Harry Kane has been ruled out of action until March with an ankle ligament injury. 

Kane limped gingerly from the Wembley turf after Sunday’s defeat, and having undergone scans, Spurs confirmed Kane has damaged ligaments in his left ankle. He is expected to return to training in early March. 

In that time, Kane will miss Premier League games against Fulham, Watford, Newcastle, Leicester, Burnley, Chelsea and, in all probability, Arsenal.

He will also miss the second leg of the League Cup semi-final at Chelsea (along with the final, should Spurs get that far), the FA Cup game at Crystal Palace and the first-leg of the Champions League tie with Borussia Dortmund. Kane will be in a race to be fit for the second leg away to the Bundesliga leaders, which is slated for 5 March. 

The injury comes at a particularly bad time for Spurs, with Kane’s strike partner Son Heung-min absent through international commitments at the Asian Cup. He stands to miss up to a month of action should South Korea qualify for the final. 

Fernando Llorente is Spurs’ only other striking option, with Mauricio Pochettino confirming that Vincent Janssen is not in his plans. 

The only comfort for Spurs supporters is the fact Kane has returned from a similar ankle ligament injury ahead of schedule in the past: having been expected to miss six weeks of action in March 2017, Kane returned three weeks ahead of schedule. 

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