Tottenham Hotspur defender Radu Dragusin is facing a significant challenge as he is set to miss the remainder of the season due to an anterior cruciate ligament injury in his right knee.
Radu Dragusin, 23, sustained the injury during last week’s Europa League match against Elfsborg and will require surgery.
Dragusin’s recovery is expected to take at least six months, with some ACL injuries potentially sidelining players for up to a year.
Tottenham has stated that Dragusin “will be assessed by our medical team to determine when he can return to training,” demonstrating their commitment to his rehabilitation.
Dragusin has been a key player for Tottenham, starting 21 of the last 23 games. He becomes part of a lengthy list of absentees that includes Destiny Udogie, Guglielmo Vicario, James Maddison, Brennan Johnson, Timo Werner, Wilson Odobert, Cristian Romero, and Dominic Solanke. However, it’s encouraging to note that fellow defenders Micky van de Ven and Ben Davies have recently returned to fitness.
Having joined Tottenham from Genoa in a £25m deal in January 2024, Dragusin’s contributions will certainly be missed on the pitch.
In response to the growing injury list, Tottenham have signed Austria defender Kevin Danso on loan for the rest of the season, with a purchase option valued at £21 million.
The club also made a move for young attacker Mathys Tel from Bayern Munich ahead of their rejected £70 million bid for England defender Marc Guehi from Crystal Palace.
Manager Ange Postecoglou continues to face the difficulty of managing a squad affected by injuries, with a total of 27 separate injuries recorded since the start of the 2024-25 campaign.
So far, of the 24 players who have started a Premier League match for Tottenham Hotspur this season—excluding new arrival Antonin Kinsky—only Pedro Porro, Dejan Kulusevski, Lucas Bergvall, Brandon Austin, and Sergio Reguilon have managed to remain injury-free.
Out of the 37 matches Tottenham have played across all competitions this season, several players have faced substantial absences: forward Wilson Odobert, recovering from a November hamstring surgery, has missed 30 games; striker Richarlison has been absent for 24 matches; and centre-back Micky van de Ven has missed 21.