Kane return a boost for Spurs’ title chase

LONDON: Striker Harry Kane could return for his side’s home Premier League clash against Watford today after recovering from an ankle injury that has ruled him out for a month.

Manager Mauricio Pochettino, whose side are still chasing Chelsea for the title, delivered the upbeat bulletin at the club’s training ground yesterday.

“It’s very good news Harry will be involved again and he’s trained well in the last few days,” Pochettino said.

“I haven’t decided yet if he’ll be in the starting eleven or on the bench but the good thing is that he’s back.

“Harry has fought a lot to get back as soon as possible, like another player would when he’s suffered an injury. They always want to be back as soon as possible.”

Leading scorer Kane’s return would be a huge boost for second-placed Tottenham, although they have coped well in his absence, winning three consecutive Premier League games and scoring seven goals in the process.

Before suffering his ankle injury against Millwall in the FA Cup, Kane was in a rich vein of form, having scored 14 goals since the turn of the year.

With Chelsea playing Bour nemouth away in today’s late kick-off, victory for Tottenham over Watford would see them cut the gap at the top to four points.

While Kane could return, Tottenham are likely to be without key midfielder Victor Wanyama, and Danny Rose and midfielder Harry Winks are ruled out.

Meanwhile, Liver pool winger Sadio Mane requires knee surgery and will miss the rest of the season, manager Juergen Klopp said yesterday.

Senegal inter national Mane, who has scored 13 League goals this season, suffered the injury during Liverpool’s 3-1 win over Everton in theLeague last weekend.

Mane’s finishing and pace have been key for Liverpool under Klopp and the team won just one of seven games in January when Mane was at the African Nations Cup.

“Pretty sure Mane needs surgery and then it is season over. Impossible that he will play again this season,” Klopp said.

Klopp also said midfielder Philippe Coutinho and striker Daniel Sturridge were doubtful for today’s league visit to Stoke City while English duo Jordan Henderson and Adam Lallana will both definitely miss the game.

The German, however, said he would not dwell on either the injury crisis or how Liverpool’s rivals were doing in the race for the top four, and urged his players to focus on picking up points.

“It’s not about thinking about the players you can’t (select), it’s about thinking of the players you can,” Klopp said.

Liverpool, who drew 2-2 with Bournemouth in midweek, are third in the table on 60 points, six points above fifth-placed Arsenal and sixth- placed Manchester United, having played two games more than both.

“We want to qualify for the Champions League,” Klopp added. “We don’t play any of our rivals any more so we can’t influence them. We just have to get as many points as we can.

“I don’t think 60, or 62, or 65 points will be enough to reach the Champions League. We need to collect a few more points.”

Meanwhile, Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has declared his admiration for Hull City counterpart Marco Silva before the sides clash today.

City’s 2-1 defeat at Chelsea in midweek left them in fourth place, 14 points behind the league leaders with eight games to play, while Hull climbed out of the relegation zone with a 4-2 win over Middlesbrough.

“I know this manager when he was in Greece (with Olympiakos) and playing Champions League football and I was in Bayern Munich,” Guardiola said.

“He is doing an outstanding job because it was absolutely at the bottom and he makes some great results.

“I like the way they play. I liked the way they played when we were there and now they have players with a lot of talent in the way they want to play. It’s offensive, not just long balls.

“They play with a lot of quality.”

Guardiola added that City will put all their energy into securing a place in next sea- son’s Champions League by finishing in the top four.

“The situation is clear – eight games left and we need to qualify for the top four and that is our target for the end of the season,” he said.

“I was expecting from the beginning of the season to fight for the Premier League until the end. We are a little bit disappointed, but I am quite happy with the way we made good things in this season.”

City have not lost to Hull at home since 1930 when they were beaten 2-1 in an FA Cup tie. Chelsea manager Antonio Conte gave short shrift to media reports linking him with a move away from the league leaders and said he was eager to build “something important” at Stamford Bridge.

The former Juventus boss, who admitted last month he has struggled adjust to life in England without his family, has been linked with a return to Italy with Inter Milan.

Speculation went into overdrive, however, after Italian agent Federico Pastorello said Conte might find offers from “historical clubs” difficult to resist.

“I don’t like it when others speak for me. Pastorello is a friend, I know him well, but I don’t like when others speak for me,” Conte told British media.

“If someone wants to know something about me, then they must ask me. We’re fighting for the title and we want to achieve this goal, then we’ll try to build something important together.”

When asked whether that meant he will be at Chelsea next season, Conte added: “Yes, for the next season.”

Winger Eden Hazard is another Chelsea employee who has been linked with a move away from the club with British media reporting strong interest from Real Madrid.

Chelsea’s Belgian goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, however, felt his compatriot would not become distracted by such talk over the last few weeks of the season.

“Eden is not affected by the speculation. He is just calm,” said Courtois, who has also been linked with a move to the Spanish giants.

“He knows that he is important to Chelsea, like I do. We are both very happy to be here. The game against City was my 100th for Chelsea, and I hope to have many more.”

Chelsea, who have a seven-point cushion over second-placed Tottenham Hotspur with eight games remaining, visit 13th-placed Bournemouth today. Reuters