Alderweireld injury


Alderweireld-injury
Are too many games catching up with Alderweireld?

A few people have been asking about the Toby Alderweireld injury concerned that he might be out for a while. There is no new news, but he didn't actually pull any muscles.

He came off because he felt it was going to go and didn't want to miss 5/6/7 weeks on the sidelines if it did go. The Belgian centre-back told De Morgen the hamstring was about to snap so he came off before the damage was done.

"It was more a precaution. I felt a little cramp and given the course of the match - sprinting, sprinting and sprinting - it was better that I went to the side, we will wait the next day to see how the injury does, but if it is something serious you are normally mega stiff, now I feel nothing. The hamstring was about to explode. If you do a one-on-one comes you must sprint, it was just ready to go."

As I have mentioned before fatigue causes muscle injuries, it's why you have to rotate players and give them rests where you can. The management of a players fitness is just another part of a coaches job.

Last season you'll note Dele Alli was taken off a lot after 60 minutes, or brought on after 60. We rotated our full-backs, we rotated out attacking midfielders. Then we had the European Championships in the summer and after a while things catch up with you.

He was wise to come off before the thigh muscle went as now, with an FA Cup tie next week that he won't be needed for against Wycombe Wanderers, he has a week and a half to recuperate. The next Premier League game isn't until Tuesday 31 January against Sunderland away.

Without a pull that is plenty of time to recover, if there is a slight pull it could be aggravated so the results of a scan should tell us more. If you have torn a hamstring you know about it, a twinge and it is usually fine after a weeks rest and that is without all the professional treatment these players get. There can't be anyone who has played sport all their lives and not suffered muscle injuries, if they have they haven't been giving it 100% that's for sure.

I will be very surprised given the Alderweireld and Pochettino comments if he is not in the team against Sunderland.

"I think it doesn't look bad. We don't know if it was an injury or it was a precaution that he decided to come off the pitch. I think he felt tired and I think with Toby, when we were talking, it doesn't look bad."


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