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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
Sport
Dan Kilpatrick

Tottenham: Pape Matar Sarr passed fit to join Senegal squad for Africa Cup of Nations

Tottenham's Pape Matar Sarr has been passed fit to compete for Senegal in the Africa Cup of Nations despite the hamstring scare which forced him off against Bournemouth on New Year's Eve.

Sarr was named in Senegal's squad last week but his participation in the tournament was left in doubt when he was substituted in tears half an hour into Sunday's 3-1 win over the Cherries, having opened the scoring.

The 21-year-old - who has signed a new contract with the club until 2030 - was assessed at Hotspur Way on Tuesday and passed fit to play in the tournament, and was on Wednesday morning travelling to the Ivory Coast to join the Senegal squad.

Aliou Cisse's side are aiming to retain their AFCON title and are expected to go deep in the tournament, which could rule Sarr out of domestic action until mid-February.

Spurs are also losing Mali's Yves Bissouma to the tournament, while captain Heung-min Son is due to compete in the Asian Cup, which runs concurrently in Qatar, for South Korea.

The trio will definitely miss Friday's FA Cup third-round tie at home to Burnley, the visit of Manchester United on January 14, as well as up to three further league games and a possible FA Cup fourth-round tie.

Ange Postecoglou, the Spurs head coach, will need to name a new captain against the Clarets, with Son's deputies James Maddison and Cristian Romero both currently sidelined.

Ben Davies is a contender and the Welshman says he is ready to step up.

"I have been here a while so it's important with the experience I've got to help the boys out," Davies said.

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