Rodrigo Bentancur set to be out until February after tearing an ankle ligament

Tottenham midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur is set to be out until February after tearing a ligament in his ankle, the PA news agency understands.

The 26-year-old was injured in a tackle from Aston Villa’s Matty Cash during Sunday’s 2-1 home Premier League defeat, and a scan on Tuesday confirmed the extent of the damage.

The Uruguay international was making his first start since returning from an ACL injury that had kept him out since February.

It represents a further blow for manager Ange Postecoglou, who is already contending with a lengthy list of absentees, with nine first-team players having been unavailable through injury or suspension for the Villa defeat.

That list includes summer signings James Maddison and Micky van de Ven, who were influential in Spurs’ unbeaten start to the season that saw them go top after eight games.

Both went off during the 4-1 defeat to Chelsea earlier in November and are likely to be out until January, while defender Cristian Romero is currently serving a three-game ban after being red-carded against the Blues.

Tottenham are on a run of three straight league defeats that has seen them slip from first to fifth.