Lamela still not ready for Tottenham return

Joe Wright

Lamela still not ready for Tottenham return image

Erik Lamela will not make his comeback for Tottenham in Wednesday's Carabao Cup match against West Ham, manager Mauricio Pochettino has confirmed.

The Argentina winger has not played since a 2-1 defeat to Liverpool in the same competition last October due to a persistent hip problem.

Spurs 8/1 to win EFL Cup

It had been hoped the 25-year-old would be ready to play some part in this week's encounter at Wembley, having recently returned to training, but Pochettino says he is still unclear when Lamela will be ready.

"No, Erik is not on the list," he told a news conference. "He's doing well but still he's not available.

"After one year [out], I cannot say tomorrow, one week or one month. It depends on his evolution."

Midfielder Mousa Dembele could return against the Hammers, though, having missed the last month with an ankle injury.

"Yeah, he's doing well," Pochettino said of the Belgium international. "I need to decide tomorrow [Wednesday].

"It's true different players, when they are injured, you have to assess step by step. But it's good."

Pochettino went on to laugh off questions about captain Hugo Lloris' decision to vote for Zinedine Zidane to win The Best FIFA Men's Coach award.

The Real Madrid boss claimed the prize at the star-studded gala on Monday after guiding his side to glory in LaLiga, the Champions League, the Supercopa de Espana and the UEFA Super Cup in 2017.

"He voted for me number two," said Pochettino. "Who number one? Zidane? Well, he's French!

"I am happy, it's normal. Zidane received the trophy for best manager and he deserves to be number one."

Joe Wright

Joe Wright Photo

Joe is a Senior Editor at Sporting News. He was previously a sub editor and writer for Goal.com before spending six years as part of the Stats Perform editorial news service, covering major global sports including football, tennis, boxing, NBA, rugby union and athletics. Joe has reported live on some of the biggest games in football, including two UEFA Champions League finals, Euro 2016, the Confederations Cup 2017 and the 2018 World Cup final at the end of a month in Russia.