Tottenham Hotspur fans face some disappointing news as one of their players has sustained an injury. Spurs supporters are eagerly anticipating the 2024/25 season, especially after a promising first campaign under Ange Postecoglou. There’s optimism that the second season will be even better.
A major downside for Tottenham last season was the number of injuries, with James Maddison, Micky van de Ven, and Destiny Udogie spending significant time on the sidelines, and Manor Solomon playing only sparingly. Spurs are hopeful for fewer injury woes this season, but unfortunately, one player has already been injured while on international duty.
Rodrigo Bentancur, one of Tottenham’s standout performers in his first year following his move from Juventus in January 2022, has left the pitch in tears after an injury. Bentancur quickly became a key player in Spurs’ midfield with his impressive performances, even overshadowing Dejan Kulusevski. However, a serious knee injury in February 2023 kept him out for eight months. After just a few games back, he suffered an ankle injury, sidelining him for almost four weeks.
Bentancur stayed fit for the rest of the season and was called up to the Uruguay national team by Marcelo Bielsa for Copa America 2024. He was described as an ‘unbelievable player’ by Heung-min Son on Tottenham’s website. Although Bentancur initially played only as a substitute in Uruguay’s first four games, he started in the semi-final against Colombia.
Bentancur began the match well but was injured in the first half during a challenge with Jhon Arias and teammate Mathias Olivera, who collided with each other rather than the Colombian player. Despite attempting to continue, Bentancur signaled to the bench at the 33-minute mark that he couldn’t go on and was seen leaving the field in tears.
El Observador reported that Bentancur struggled after 25 minutes and asked for a substitution after 32 minutes, leaving the field in tears. His exit disrupted the team, and they conceded a goal minutes later.
Uruguay, considered favorites to win Copa America after Brazil’s elimination and under Bielsa’s management, deployed Bentancur to neutralize Colombia’s James Rodriguez. Bentancur effectively contained Rodriguez, helping Uruguay control the game. However, after his injury, Uruguay lost their defensive grip, leading to Jefferson Lerma scoring the winning goal just five minutes after Bentancur’s substitution. Despite Colombia being down to 10 men for the second half, Uruguay couldn’t capitalize and suffered a loss.
