Tottenham Hotspur manager Thomas Frank is facing a defensive crisis ahead of their Champions League clash against AS Monaco, with key players ruled out due to injury. The Spurs are set to play Monaco on Wednesday, October 22, 2025, and are working to bounce back from their recent 2-1 Premier League defeat against Aston Villa.
Cristian Romero, the captain, is among those sidelined. Romero suffered an adductor injury during the warm-up before the Aston Villa game, forcing him to withdraw from the starting lineup at the last minute. While Frank downplayed the severity of the injury, stating, "It's an adductor strain. We will assess it more this week before we confirm any timeframe," Romero has not traveled with the squad to Monaco. Frank added that he doesn't believe fans should be overly concerned about Romero's injury.
Destiny Udogie is another significant absentee for Tottenham. The Italian full-back is suffering from knee irritation that arose after international duty. "The latest is that he got that knee irritation after international duty," Frank said. "We are assessing and working very hard to get on top of it. We'll know more day by day". Udogie also did not participate in the Monaco trip.
Adding to Frank's selection woes, Ben Davies was also absent from Tottenham training. Davies sustained a muscular problem while on international duty with Wales. With Romero and Udogie unavailable, Frank may have to keep the same back four.
The absence of these key defenders presents a challenge for Tottenham as they aim to improve their Champions League standing. They currently hold ninth position in the league phase standings, with one win and one draw from their first two games.
In addition to the defensive concerns, Tottenham is already missing several other senior players due to injury. Radu Dragusin, Yves Bissouma, James Maddison, Dejan Kulusevski, and Dominic Solanke are all sidelined. Mathys Tel and Kota Takai are unavailable as they were not included in the Champions League squad.
Despite the mounting injury list, Frank remains focused on the task. He emphasized the need to concentrate on the players who are available and prepare them for the crucial match against Monaco.
Adding to Tottenham's history with Monaco, former Spurs defender Eric Dier, now with AS Monaco, will miss the game due to a hamstring injury. Dier made 365 appearances for Tottenham between 2014 and 2024. Monaco will also be without Paul Pogba, Lukas Hradecky, Vanderson and Lamine Camara.
