Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Mousa Dembele suffers ankle injury in Bayer Leverkusen defeat

Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Mousa Dembele is a doubt for Sunday's north London derby after twisting his ankle in Spurs' 1-0 defeat to Bayer Leverkusen. The 29-year-old Belgian had to be replaced during the first-half of the game at Wembley and manager Mauricio Pochettino admitted Dembele's absence was a major problem for his side.

Pochettino also confessed Spurs are in the midst of a poor run of form heading into the much-anticipated clash against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium. Tottenham have not won any of their last six games and Pochettino said there are problems that need to be addressed.

"Mousa Dembele is an important player for us but it (his first-half injury) is not an excuse. He twisted his ankle and cannot continue in the game," the Tottenham manager explained after their Champions League defeat, as quoted by the BBC.

"We need to improve and change some things. We are in a bad moment. After Manchester City we don't win and we need to be critical and find answers."

Pochettino admitted to being frustrated by Spurs' lacklustre display against Leverkusen, which leaves them struggling to qualify for the next round of the Champions League. However, the Argentine refused to blame the unfamiliar surroundings of Wembley for their below-par performance.

"We were poor. I have nothing to say about Wembley, we were poor," the Tottenham boss said after they conceded a second-half goal to Kevin Kampl.

"If we analyse the game we created the same number of chances and have more possession but the feeling was always that is was difficult to score. We don't have the freedom to play and show real quality. After two games at Wembley, both have been poor. It is not an excuse, it is the truth."