LONDON – Tottenham Hotspur cannot afford to rest striker Harry Kane for the FA Cup third-round match at home to third-tier Portsmouth because they are short of attacking options, assistant manager Cristian Stellini said.
Forwards Dejan Kulusevski and Richarlison and central midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur are all ruled out of the game due to injuries.
“It could be an opportunity to give him (Kane) a rest but we don’t have many players,” Stellini said according to Reuters.
“We have to choose the players (we have) in the front line. We have three strikers at the moment and we will use them.
“It’s an important match in an important cup and if you want to respect it you use the players in their positions. At the moment we have those three.”
Spurs started with Kane, Son Heung-min and Bryan Gil in their 4-0 Premier League win at Crystal Palace on Wednesday.
Stellini attended the news conference after Tottenham manager Antonio Conte opted out to mourn the death of former Italy striker and Juventus team mate Gianluca Vialli at the age of 58 due to cancer.
“Antonio at this moment is very upset. We are close to Vialli’s family and all of those who loved Vialli. He’s an important person,” said Stellini.
“He was a great player but first of all a great man. He taught us a lot of things, not only when he played but when he spoke. If you know him and the people that know him (they) only speak well about this great guy. A great leader for Italy.”
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