Ange Postecoglou handed timely boost ahead West Ham as Spurs boss admits he's missed 25y/o

Tottenham defender Cristian Romero is set to return to the team for the first time since early November after completing his three-game suspension.

The 2022 World Cup winner was sent off for a heavy tackle on Chelsea's Enzo Fernandez in their 4-1 defeat to the Blues. He's since missed games against Wolves, Aston Villa and Manchester City but will now return against the Hammers.

His return is a massive boost to the team especially as they have been without fellow defender Micky van de Ven who picked up a hamstring injury and will be out until January at the latest.

The absence of the duo has seen Eric Dier, Ben Davies and Emerson Royal doing shifts at centre half but it's just not been like the flying start Spurs had when both Romero and van de Ven were on the field.

Tottenham have lost three games since Romero's suspension but showed incredible resilience to go to the Etihad and hold Manchester City to a draw despite being seond best most of the time.

Spurs manager Ange Postecoglou's methods had been questioned when he refused to back down and change his style of play in the face of injuries and suspension but the result against Manchester City proved he was right and that it was important to remain focused even in the face of adversity.

The Tottenham manager expressed his delight after the game against Manchester City and admitted the team missed Romero. He told reporters after the game against Manchester City: "We've gone through an extreme period, we'll get Romero back and we've missed him.

"Richarlison got some game time and Sarr might be ready at the end of the week but the rest are not coming back anytime soon.

"As we get some players back, I'm confident we'll pick up some momentum and we can battle with anyone."