Injury-hit Spurs face fight for top four, says Souness
Kane to be sidelined until March; Moura and Sissoko also out
Harry Kane's ankle injury could leave Tottenham Hotspur in a battle to finish in the top four and hurt their chances of silverware, said former EPL manager Graeme Souness.
Kane will be sidelined until March after suffering ankle ligament damage in Sunday's 1-0 defeat by Manchester United.
The 25-year-old striker sustained the injury to his left ankle in the closing moments of the loss at Wembley and scans have confirmed the extent of the problem, AFP reported.
It is the third successive season the England captain has missed games due to an ankle injury.
Tottenham's plight is further compounded by the loss of in-form forward Son Heung Min, who joined up with South Korea at the Asian Cup and, as a result, Souness feels that Spurs must enter the transfer market for reinforcements.
The former Liverpool manager has warned Spurs that buying players to cope with Kane and Son's absence will now be difficult, with selling teams likely to hike up the price.
"Without Harry, they risk not qualifying for the Champions League," Souness told Sky Sports.
"It might force them to do something they thought they could do in the summer and who's available at this time of year?
"All of a sudden, you're buying under pressure. Clubs will know that Tottenham are under the cosh, so the premiums will go up again. It's not a good place to be when you're trying to buy players under pressure."
Former Spurs striker Robbie Keane agreed with Souness' assessment and said: "They definitely need to get someone in, I would say in this window for a bit of back-up if he's out for a few weeks.
"You've got (Fernando) Llorente who is a great professional and he'll do a job for you, but he's not a prolific goalscorer. Maybe it's time that (chairman) Daniel (Levy) does something to help the squad out."
KANE THANKS FANS
Vowing to return as fast as possible, Kane wrote on his Twitter account: "Injuries are part of the game, but no one will be working harder to get back fit. Thanks for the messages."
Kane is Tottenham's top scorer this season with 20 goals in 31 appearances in all competitions as Spurs chase the first trophy of manager Mauricio Pochettino's five-year reign.
He had scored seven times in his last seven matches to keep third-placed Tottenham in with an outside chance in the English Premier League title hunt, the north Londoners sitting nine points behind leaders Liverpool.
Kane, who won the Golden Boot as the World Cup's leading marksman last year, also scored the penalty winner against Chelsea in the League Cup semi-final, first leg.
He will miss the second leg at Chelsea next week, as well as the FA Cup fourth-round trip to Crystal Palace and at least six crucial league games.
The first leg of Tottenham's Champions League last-16 tie at home to Borussia Dortmund will also come too soon for Kane.
He faces a race to be fit for the North London Derby against Arsenal on March 2 and the second leg at Dortmund three days later.
More immediately, with Son away on international duty and Brazil winger Lucas Moura also injured, Pochettino is left with Llorente and Vincent Janssen as his only fit senior forwards.
Speaking before tests confirmed Kane's ankle ligament damage, Pochettino had already admitted he was "worried" about the situation.
Midfielder Moussa Sissoko was also injured against United to further deplete Pochettino's options.
Get The New Paper on your phone with the free TNP app. Download from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store now