Ange Postecoglou confirms Dominic Solanke blow ahead of Carabao Cup semi-final second leg after latest Tottenham defeat

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Dominic Solanke is looking like a doubt for Tottenham’s Carabao Cup semi-final second leg against Liverpool.

The striker played no part in Spurs’ latest defeat – a 3-2 loss to Everton at Goodison Park due to a knee problem.

Heung-min Son led the line for the north London side, but he was largely isolated throughout.

Solanke has led the line on his own due to the club’s fitness issues but has now suffered an injury himself.

Brennan Johnson and Timo Werner also played no part.

Yves Bissouma also missed the match, so Tottenham’s injury crisis is getting worse.

Postecoglou confirmed the news ahead of kick-off at Goodison Park, saying: “Brennan and Biss picked up knocks against Arsenal.

“Biss not too bad, Brennan probably a little bit more significant.

“Dominic tweaked his knee yesterday in training trying to take a shot and misses today and not sure of the extent of it.”

Postecoglou continued: “It’s always a blow when you lose key players for any club.

“Obviously in the situation we’re in that’s further exemplified by the fact that we don’t really have the depth to cover it at the moment, but that’s okay.

“We’ve got 11 fit players and that’s what you need to start a game.”

He also sat out the reverse meeting with Everton after picking up a knock on his Premier League debut for Tottenham.

The England international sat out the 4-0 win over the Toffees in August as well as the 2-1 defeat to Newcastle in the club’s next match.

However, since his return, Solanke has been near-ever present for Tottenham in the Premier League, scoring seven times.

Aside from sitting out a 1-1 draw with Fulham in December due to illness, the 27-year-old has started every other top-flight match.

Postecoglou’s lack of cover in forward areas following Richarlison‘s injury woes have also meant Solanke hasn’t been afforded a rest.

The latter has played the third-most amount of minutes in the Premier League for Tottenham this season, only behind Pedro Porro and Dejan Kulusevski.

Solanke has also racked up over 500 minutes across three cup competitions, with 11 goals in total since arriving from Bournemouth.

He was even needed to cameo from the bench in the FA Cup third-round 3-0 extra-time win over National League Tamworth.

After the loss at Goodison Park, Postecoglou revealed that he expects to be without his striker for a ‘few weeks’, which would make him a huge doubt for the second leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final against Liverpool.

He said: “It was just one of those things. He went to shoot on his own and twisted it. We don’t think it’s serious but it’ll be a few weeks.”

If it is a few weeks, then Solanke stands a low chance of playing the second leg on Thursday, February 6.

He provided the assist for Lucas Bergvall’s winner in the first meeting between the two, with Spurs holding a slender 1-0 advantage.

Only this week, Postecoglou all-but foreshadowed Solanke’s injury by sharing his fear that his No.9 was being overloaded.

The Australian manager admitted he was in the process of targeting a new forward this month to relieve the burden on Solanke.

Postecoglou said: “If we can get him some help, yeah [he will continue to fill the gap left by Harry Kane].

“Dom has just been outstanding in the way he's carried the frontline for us during this period.

“With the way we play, we put a lot of demands on that position. It's not just him standing up there scoring goals, it's working hard for the team.

“I really think if Richy was available, I think [Dom] would have been able to contribute even greater for us in terms of his output in goals.

“I really love what he brings to us as a team from a football perspective, from a cultural perspective.

“The only growth we've seen in recent times is him and Deki [Dejan Kulusevski] becoming on-field leaders in the team.

“With Dom being a new player, it probably would have been easier for him to slip in and do his job but he's taken on the responsibility of helping the whole team. He's been great for us.

“I really feel there is more to him and his game. We'll be able to get more out of him if we can him some help.”

Postecoglou will now be sweating on a prolonged absence for Solanke ahead of a crucial spell in Tottenham’s faltering season.

The latest defeat was Tottenham’s 12th of the season, leaving them in 15th place.

The Lilywhites haven’t won a Premier League match since beating bottom-of-the-table Southampton on December 15.

That is their only victory in their past ten top-flight encounters, and Everton are now just four points behind Tottenham with a game-in-hand.