Jose Mourinho fears Toby Alderweireld faces a lengthy absence after injury against Manchester City

Tottenham Hotspur defender Toby Alderweireld could face a lengthy spell on the sidelines after suffering a groin injury in Saturday’s 2-0 win over Manchester City in the Premier League.

The Belgian centre half limped off in the 81st minute after going down with the injury and manager Jose Mourinho did not sound optimistic of a quick return.

It was the only disappointment in a positive day for Spurs, who went top of the league thanks to goals from Son Heung-min and Giovanni Lo Celso.

Toby Alderweireld could be facing a lengthy spell after being forced off against Man City

Manager Jose Mourinho confirmed it was a ‘bad’ injury and he could be out for a while

‘It’s bad. It’s a muscular injury in the adductor. The dimension of course we don’t know, we have to wait, but it’s a difficult injury for sure,’ Mourinho said. 

Asked if it was potentially a long-term injury, the Spurs manager said: ‘I would say so’.

Joe Rodon, a transfer deadline signing from Swansea City, replaced the Belgian alongside Eric Dier in defence.

Mourinho suggested the injury was due to fatigue following several international matches

Mourinho suggested the injury was influenced by fatigue.

‘We don’t have anybody to blame. He played in the international matches that the (Belgian) team needed to win to qualify for the final four. With us he’s playing so well we decided to play him rather than rest him.

‘There’s nobody to blame, just to recover as soon as possible,’ he said.