Ange Postecoglou made his first return to Ibrox since leaving Celtic with a fire extinguisher to hand.
Tottenham’s injury problems are being compounded by fears that Micky van de Ven will be out for three weeks with his latest hamstring injury and Cristian Romero for twice as long with a thigh muscle problem.
Postecoglou called it ‘by far’ the worst injury crisis of his managerial career, although he declined to put a definitive timetable on how long his first-choice centre-backs will be out.
With Ben Davies also injured, he does confirm that teenage midfielder Archie Gray will most likely feature alongside Radu Dragusin against Rangers in the Europa League, heading into a busy festive period with a Carabao Cup quarter-final against Manchester United and a Premier League match . with leaders Liverpool before the transfer market opens.
“With him and Radu, they are the two most important type of defenders,” said the Spurs boss. “We still have five or six games to play, so maybe at some point we have to get creative and deal with it in a different way.”
Goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario and strikers Richarlison, Wilson Odobert and Mikey Moore are all absent due to injury and illness and Djed Spence and Sergio Reguilon have not been selected for the Europa League squad.
Ange Postecoglou is preparing for his first return to Scotland with Tottenham on Thursday
Micky van de Ven (left) and Cristian Romero will miss Thursday’s match due to long-term injuries
Spurs teenage midfielder Archie Gray will most likely play in defense against Rangers
Postecoglou also addressed the fallout from Romero’s public criticism of Tottenham’s transfer policy following his injury during Sunday’s 4-3 defeat at home to Chelsea in interviews with Spanish media.
Romero appeared to take aim at chairman Daniel Levy and the board, claiming Spurs had failed to strengthen the squad to compete with Manchester City, Liverpool and Chelsea.
“Those are the things you have to imitate,” the Argentina international said. ‘You have to realize that something is going wrong, hopefully they realize that.’
Postecoglou said Romero had apologized. “He was obviously very emotional,” the Spurs boss added.
‘He is passionate about success at the club and the way he expressed that it was not right was in a public sense. I don’t feel and it’s certainly not my belief that our challenges right now are about one thing or one person, I don’t believe that. I never believed that.
Radu Dragusin (left) is likely to start as a centre-back for Spurs in the Europa League
Postecoglou is assured of a hostile return to Ibrox for the first time since his Celtic team lost 3-0 in May 2023
“Whatever we need to do, we have the power to do it, but it will only happen if we stay united as a group, especially in difficult times, and reach the other side. I am convinced that if you can do that, you will come out stronger.
“A lot of what he said was right, some was wrong and should not have been said in public. We handle these matters within our own four walls. Just as I wouldn’t criticize a player or anyone else, we shouldn’t do that in public either.”
Furthermore, Postecoglou has been assured of a hostile return to Ibrox for the first time since his Celtic team lost 3-0 in May 2023, just days before confirming his move to Tottenham.
“I think you know what kind of reception I get,” he smiled when asked. ‘I have a pretty clear idea of how challenging it is to play them here in front of that audience, with the atmosphere. But at the same time it’s exciting, you look forward to big games and I’m sure the players do too.’