Njie, Bentaleb and Pritchard future uncertain after Tottenham tour snub
KEY POINTS
- Spurs face Juventus and Atletico Madrid in the International Champions Cup in Melbourne.
- Mauricio Pochettino rests 10 of the 11 players who featured at the European Championships.
Tottenham Hotspur have omitted Clinton Njie, Nabil Bentaleb and Alex Pritchard from their squad for the International Champions Cup matches against Juventus and Atletico Madrid in July. Mauricio Pochettino has selected a 24-man travelling party for the fixtures in Melbourne, Australia, with 10 of the 11 players who played at the European Championships having been rested.
Joining established first-team players Nacer Chadli, Christian Eriksen and Erik Lamela will be new signings Victor Wanyama and Vincent Janssen, and a throng of young players who are being given the chance to force their way into Pochettino's thinking.
Luke Amos, Dominic Ball, Cameron Carter-Vickers, Marcus Edwards, Shayon Harrison, Luke McGee, Will Miller, Kyle Walker-Peters and Anton Walkes are the players selected who are yet to make their Spurs debuts.
As expected, England quintet Kyle Walker, Danny Rose, Eric Dier, Dele Alli and Harry Kane are all omitted as they continue to recover from the rigours of the summer. Wales's Ben Davies, France captain Hugo Lloris and Belgium trio Toby Alderweireld, Mousa Dembele and Jan Vertonghen – who suffered ankle ligament damage during the tournament – are also left out.
Kevin Wimmer is the only player who appeared at Euro 2016 to be included in Tottenham's travelling squad, yet it is those left out who will create the most interest – and whose futures may now lie outside north London. Njie, Bentaleb and Pritchard all featured under Pochettino last season but that could represent their final action in a Spurs shirt.
A departure for Njie would come just 12 months after he joined Tottenham from Lyon. The Cameroon international made two senior starts in the Europa League before suffering a knee injury which kept him out for nearly five months. The 22-year-old did play in the penultimate Premier League game of the season against Southampton, but The Guardian understands he could move to Marseille as part of the deal which sees Georges-Kévin Nkoudou arrive.
Tottenham avoided losing Bentaleb for the start of the season when he was left out of the Algeria squad for the Olympic Games, but the midfielder looks to be on his way out having struggled since the arrival of Pochettino. Injuries restricted him to just two league starts last term, missing the last two months of the season after undergoing knee surgery in March. The Daily Mail understands the club are ready to listen to offers for the 21-year-old.
Tottenham squad to face Juventus and Atletico Madrid in full:
Luke Amos, Dominic Ball, Tom Carroll, Cameron Carter-Vickers, Nacer Chadli, Marcus Edwards, Christian Eriksen, Tom Glover, Shayon Harrison, Vincent Janssen, Erik Lamela, Ryan Mason, Luke McGee, Will Miller, Josh Onomah, Heung-Min Son, Kieran Trippier, Michel Vorm, Kyle Walker-Peters, Anton Walkes, Victor Wanyama, Kevin Wimmer, Harry Winks, DeAndre Yedlin.
Pritchard meanwhile has played for Tottenham just twice since moving to the club from West Ham United in 2009, following loan spells at Peterborough United, Swindon Town, Brentford and, last term, at West Bromwich Albion. Sky Sports understands the club have put the former England Under-21 international up for sale, valuing him at £8m [$11.5m].
© Copyright IBTimes 2024. All rights reserved.
