Antonio Conte provided mixed updates for his injured Tottenham players ahead of the trip to face Aston Villa on Saturday. Spurs are currently fourth in the Premier League but need maximum points against Steven Gerrard's side to keep them in the battle for a Champions League spot.
When Aston Villa travelled to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium they secured a 2-1 victory. Conte will hope his side can travel north and get another three points at the weekend.
The regular XI that the Italian has opted for so far have made great improvements to help them get positive results in recent weeks. Ahead of the 5-1 victory over Newcastle, Conte revealed that Oliver Skipp and Ryan Sessegnon were close to returning and were having training session away from the rest of the squad.
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Sergio Reguilon missed out on the game against The Magpies as he picked up an injury during training in the days previous. Ahead of Saturday's match, the 52-year-old provided a new update on the injured trio.
"No new injuries, two good news because Ryan Sessegnon and Sergio Reguilon they had the training session with us," Conte admitted in his pre match press conference.
"About Oliver Skipp, we have to wait. He's not ready, he's still not ready and we need to have patience with him and sort this problem. But for the Aston Villa game, good news because Sergio had the training session and it was the same for Ryan Sessegnon.
"It was the first time for Ryan Sessegnon for a long time and for him we have to pay more attention than Sergio. But at the same time it was good to have him with us in the training session," he added.
This provided a mixed update from the Spurs boss. Skipp was in solid form before he played his final game against Chelsea at the end of January.
The 21-year-old's injury has kept him out for a good few months and as the end of the season edges closer, it raises questions over whether he will return before the end of the campaign. However, Conte was adamant that Skipp will return, when asked if he was tempted to rest the midfielder for the rest of the season.
"Absolutely not, we have to recover him for this season. Full stop," the Italian admitted. "This must be our target, for the medical department, for the player.
"It's totally different from [Japhet] Tanganga's situation. Japh had a knee injury and was out for the season. But Skipp, no.
"It's important for the player to feel this possibility and there is this possibility to recover this season. Also we need him and we trust him," Conte added.
Sessegnon has been very unlucky with injuries throughout his Tottenham career and this season has been no different, with his hamstrings particularly causing him problems. This has meant that Reguilon has stepped in for the 21-year-old who, before his injury, was also finding solid form.
The Spaniard was producing a mixture of displays as he worked hard down the left flank. The 25-year-old deals with much of what is thrown at him defensively but struggles further down the pitch, something that needs improving as a wing-back.
Conte will be pleased that his two options on the left could be available for Saturday's trip. However, he will have to continue to wait for Skipp's return to the matchday squad.
