You have to fill a 25 man squad with somebody and given the three major loan departures and one
permanent sale earlier this week, perhaps it's no surprise at some of the names being included by
Spurs this week.
In addition to those departures, Tom Carroll and John Bostock also went out to Derby and
Sheffield Wednesday respectively so are David Bentley, Bongani Khumalo and Simon Dawkins literally
there to ‘make up the numbers?
Speculation may continue about possible transfer targets for Spurs this January but manager
Harry Redknapp has indicated today that it could be another quiet winter at the Lane.
Speaking on Talksport, Harry did highlight the defensive injury problems that Spurs have
suffered since the start of the season.
Spurs arrived at Coca-Cola Park in Johannesburg without a win so far in the Vodacom Challenge
tournament but still found themselves in the final against the South African Champions Orlando
Pirates. It was their second meeting in 5 days after they played out a 1-1 draw on Tuesday.
Final Score: Tottenham Hotspur 1 (Van der Vaart 17)
Orlando Pirates 1 (Jele 40)
Spurs Line up: Friedel; Naughton(Walker 45); Kaboul(Dawson 45); Khumalo; Rose;
Bentley(Lennon 45); Palacios(Corluka 45); Modric(Jenas 60); Bale(Kranjcar 60); Van der Vaart(Keane
45); Defoe (Pavlyuchenko 45)
Spurs took to the pitch for their second game of the Vodacom Challenge to take on South African
champions Orlando Pirates.
After what seems an eternity in the thrall of Sky Sports News and their incessant pimping of
Modric across London, it's finally time for the boys to pull on their new shirts (they'll be
wearing the more appealing Investec sponsored ones for this competition) and get on the pitch.
Bongani Khumalo has spoken very positively about his start to life in England although there
remains a lot of speculation as to whether he is up to the task of performing at the highest
level.
Speaking on the club's official website the player said: "It was a great experience to play my
first matches in England.
He may only be 30, at or only just past the peak of his abilities, and still arguably the best
option for Harry Redknapp at centre-back, but make no mistake about it- Ledley King, by most
popular accounts, has seen his best days come and go at Tottenham.
Having spent almost all of the past season under the cloud of groin and recurrent knee injuries
and with Michael Dawson emerging as a competent and trusted understudy captain, questions have
already started to emerge over just how long King's gilted Spurs career will last, with some
speculators already suggesting that he's already on the way to retirement.
The injury to William Gallas has plunged Spurs into a ‘defensive crisis' as we head into the
most crucial part of our season. Hindsight is a wonderful thing in all walks of life, but when you
look back to the January transfer window, could we not have pre-empted this?
Injuries can strike the fittest players at any time and the loss of Kaboul was unfortunate.
Steven Pienaar image Safa
Bafana Bafana vs Kenya is going to be one of those matches where the boys are quick out of the
starting block according to coach Pitso Mosimane.
The encounter against the Harambee Stars will be the coach's last chance to see his team in
competitive action ahead of next month's crucial African Nations Cup qualifier with Egypt.
The Physio room at Tottenham is becoming ever more crowded as Steven Pienaar joined a growing
list of casualties after a head injury picked up in training. Pienaar clashed heads with fellow new
signing Bongani Khumalo and was reported to have been knocked unconscious. He is expected to be out
for two weeks.
Remember Jamie O'Hara? With the arrival of Steven Pienaar adding to the embarrassment of riches
in midfield, there are truly some forgotten men in the ranks at Tottenham.
O'Hara, whose last competitive outing was last season's F A Cup final while playing for
Portsmouth against Chelsea, took his place in a strong Spurs XI that demolished a QPR side 9-2 on
Tuesday.
