Tottenham Hotspur, who are battling Manchester City for the top spot in the Premier League, are facing the prospect of losing key defender Micky van der Penn for an extended period of time.

"Van der Vaart will have his hamstring examined in the next 24 hours," the British Daily Mirror reported on Aug. 8 (KST), adding that he could miss months of the season.

Van der Vaart started the match against Chelsea at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London, England, on July 7 before being replaced by Emerson Royal in first-half injury time.

Van der Penn went down after sprinting past an opposing striker and clutching his hamstring.

Some theorize that van der Penn's injury was the aftermath of Christian Romero's ejection. When Romero was sent off, Eric Dier was brought on to replace him, and it was argued that Dier, who is not as fast as Romero, was unable to keep up with the opposing striker, forcing van der Penn to speed up.

After the game, van der Penn left the field on crutches, leaving concerns.

According to the Daily Mail, tests for muscle injuries are usually not done until 48 to 72 hours after the pain occurs. 카지노사이트가이드

If the injury is serious, surgery is required, which could potentially wipe out his entire season.

Van der Penn, who joined Tottenham in a €50 million deal, was one of the best defenders in the German Bundesliga last season. In 33 Bundesliga appearances for Wolfsburg, he kept a whopping 11 clean sheets.

On top of that, he was the fastest defender in the Bundesliga, drawing comparisons to fellow Dutchman Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool). It was van der Penn's speed that allowed Postecoglou to employ a tactic of dropping the defense all the way down the line.

Since joining Tottenham, van der Vaart has been a mainstay in the defense alongside Romero, pushing out established defender Eric Dier.

"Van der Vaart's fierce intensity has allowed Spurs to play a high defensive line, a key part of Pochettino's tactics," said the Daily Mail, "but his absence could force Pochettino to change his tactical approach."

Spurs were unable to overcome a numerical disadvantage against Chelsea, which saw two defenders sent off - Romero and Destiny Udoh - and suffered their first defeat of the season, going down 1-4. The loss, their first in 11 games, leaves them on 26 points, one point behind Manchester City in second place.

Tottenham will play their 12th game of the season on Nov. 11 against Hwang Hee-Chan's Wolverhampton Wanderers. Wolverhampton are in 14th place with 12 points.