Ange Postecoglou provides Pape Matar Sarr and Yves Bissouma Tottenham update ahead of AFCON

Ange Postecoglou has admitted he is unsure when exactly Yves Bissouma and Pape Matar Sarr will depart to play at the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations. Already short on players as things stand at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium due to a number of injuries, Spurs will lose three more at the turn of the year due to two tournaments taking place at the same time.

Captain Son Heung-min will be one of those to depart as he represents South Korea at the Asian Cup, while Bissouma and Sarr will play for Mali and Senegal respectively at the Africa Cup of Nations. The tournament in Ivory Coast commences on Saturday, January 13 and draws to a conclusion on Sunday, February 11, thus raising the prospect of both players missing a good chunk of Tottenham games.

As Senegal are the favourites to regain the trophy they lifted in 2022, Spurs could find themselves missing Sarr for the full month. Amid reports from South Korea that Son will join up with his national team after Tottenham's game against Bournemouth on Sunday, January 31, football.london asked Postecoglou in his pre-match press conference about when exactly Bissouma and Sarr will depart.

«No, we're still working through that,» he said. «I'm still focusing on what's ahead between now and then and we'll go through all of those permutations over the next few weeks.»

Also pressed on Son given his fine form for Tottenham this campaign, Postecoglou was asked how exactly Tottenham will manage to cope in January and potentially early February without the trio.

«Nothing’s really surprised me about Sonny. As you say I’ve known him a long time,» said the 58-year-old. «His qualities as a player are pretty evident to anyone who’s been following the Premier League and world football.

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