Van der Vaart in doubt for Spurs

Tottenham could be missing Dutch midfield ace Rafael Van der Vaart for their Champions League clash with Werder Bremen on Wednesday.

The 27-year-old complained of a sore ankle after Saturday’s 3-2 away win over Arsenal in the English Premier League, and was sent for scans on Tuesday to determine the extent of the damage.

Boss Harry Redknapp said the loss of the playmaker – who has scored eight goals from his 13 appearances with Spurs since joining in the off-season – would be a blow for the Londoners, but he insisted they had the depth to cover his absence.

“Obviously it’d be a big loss to us, as you say he’s been in great form,” Redknapp said on Tuesday in a press conference.

“Jermain Defoe’s coming back as well and that’s a big bonus for us. He trained this morning and he’s fine. Robbie Keane also trained this morning, not too bad.”

Redknapp revealed in-form winger Gareth Bale is also in doubt for the Bremen clash after picking up a shoulder knock in the Arsenal match.

“Bale hopefully will be fit, he’s the only other doubt but we’ll have to see how he is tomorrow as well,” he said.

Redknapp was delighted by the return of Defoe, who came on as a substitute against Arsenal after missing almost two months of football with an ankle injury picked up on international duty.

“Whether I start him or bring him off the bench tomorrow, he’ll play a part in the game – that’s for sure,” Redknapp said.

“But he’s looked sharp, he’s trained well. He came on on Saturday and made an impact for us at Arsenal at half-time so it’s great to have him back.”

“He’s a goal scorer, a fantastic finisher and he looks sharp and bright and ready to play.”

Spurs lead the Champions League Group A by goal difference from Italian giants Inter Milan, with both clubs on seven points.

Dutch side FC Twente are third on five points with Bremen bottom on two, meaning the Germans face a certain exit should they lose at White Hart Lane.

Spurs can guarantee qualification for the knockout stage with a win on Wednesday night, and midfielder Jermaine Jenas said the squad was focused solely on achieving that goal.

“If we can get ourselves through tomorrow night, it will kind of be a bit of a weight off our shoulders,” Jenas said.

“It would be nice to go through, get that to the side and concentrate on our league over Christmas.”