Tottenham team news: Christian Eriksen and Mousa Dembele fit to return against West Ham
The Dane has not featured for Spurs since September 22, missing four matches with an abdominal injury
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Your support makes all the difference.Christian Eriksen is fit to return for Tottenham Hotspur in Saturday’s trip to London Stadium to take on West Ham in the Premier League.
The Denmark international has been sidelined since Tottenham’s 2-1 win over Brighton on 22 September with an abdominal injury that international manager Age Hareide claimed may be “chronic” – but the problem has not proved as bad as some feared.
Spurs have won two of their last four matches in all competitions without Eriksen, beating Huddersfield Town and Cardiff City in the Premier League but requiring penalties to eliminate Watford from the EFL Cup and losing comprehensively at home against Barcelona in the Champions League.
Another man available to Mauricio Pochettino again is Mousa Dembele, who has not featured for Tottenham since limping out of the Barcelona game with a thigh injury.
Dele Alli remains sidelined with a hamstring injury, but Pochettino expects the England international to step up his recovery by returning to training next week - though not in time to be available for Tottenham's clash with PSV Eindhoven in the Champions League on Tuesday.
Danny Rose is one week away from returning as he continues rehabilitation work on the groin issue that forced him to pull out of England duty for Uefa Nations League matches against Croatia and Spain, while Jan Vertonghen is not expected back until December after suffering a significant hamstring injury during Spurs’ win over Huddersfield.
Tottenham have been plagued with muscle injuries in the early part of this season, and earlier this month Pochettino pointedly criticised the additional strain that the newly-introduced Uefa Nations League has placed upon players who are already expected to navigate gruelling fixture schedules.
“It's dangerous,” the Spurs boss said. “I've told you before that it's so difficult [for the players]. Football is massive business and it's not easy. The football business today does not care about the players – it's all about games, games, games.
“It's so difficult to understand this competition. You finish the World Cup then first international break you have to compete again in an official tournament. It's better to say to the player: ‘training, rest, recovery.’
“Then they need to go and I understand the national team wants their best players, always. The problem is always for the clubs. It's so difficult for the clubs.”
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