Xavi Simons has been ruled out for the rest of the season in a huge blow to Tottenham’s bid to avoid relegation from the Premier League.
The Dutch star, 23, will also miss the World Cup with a knee injury suffered in Spurs’ 1-0 win over Wolves on Saturday.
There are fears Simons has torn his ACL but the extent of the problem has not yet been confirmed by the club.
In a statement on Instagram, Simons said: ‘They say life can be cruel and today it feels that way. My season has come to an abrupt end and I’m just trying to process it. Honestly, I’m heartbroken. None of it makes sense.
‘All I’ve wanted to do is fight for my team and now the ability to do that has been snatched away from me… along with the World Cup. Representing my country this summer…just gone. It’ll take time to find peace with this, but I’ll continue to be the best teammate I can be. I have no doubt that together we’ll win this fight.
Xavi Simons suffered the injury during Tottenham’s 1-0 win at Wolves on Saturday
Roberto De Zerbi was fearful over the extent of Simons’ injury and those concerns have been confirmed
‘I’ll walk this path now, guided by faith, with strength, with resilience, with belief, as I count down the days to getting back out there.
Simons suffered the worrying injury in the second half at Molineux when he fell awkwardly close to the byline.
He was left in agony after suffering the injury, but briefly attempted to play on before ultimately dropping back to the pitch.
Simons was attended to by Tottenham medical staff and a stretcher was called. The creative midfielder, a £51million signing last summer, was wheeled around the pitch after leaving the field.
Footage posted on social media showed Wolves fans abusing the stricken Spurs star as he was brought past.
Simons was seen firing back at a Wolves fan as the injured Tottenham star was wheeled away
Simons fired back at the home fans and was seen appearing to shout ‘f*** you’ multiple times towards one particularly vocal Wolves supporter.
The loss of Simons was a second injury blow of the match for Spurs, who had earlier seen Dominic Solanke limp off with a muscle problem.
Simons had been a key man for Roberto De Zerbi since the Italian’s arrival at the club and scored a stunning goal in the 2-2 draw with Brighton last weekend.
His absence will be felt as Spurs battle for survival in the Premier League. The victory at Wolves was not enough to lift them out of the drop zone after Callum Wilson scored a stoppage-time winner for West Ham against Everton.
Spurs remain in 18th, two points adrift of the Hammers with four games to play.
