Tottenham have received a boost after Micky van de Ven was forced off for Netherlands on Sunday, with Xavi Hernandez saying: 'It's not a big injury.'
Van de Ven featured in the Dutch 2-1 win in Eindhoven, having started all four matches during the international break. Xavi was taking charge of Netherlands for the first time and remains unbeaten, with draws against Germany and Greece and two wins over Serbia.
Concern over defender's hand injury
There was concern for the Spurs centre-back, though, who was taken off and looked in serious pain after Serbia's Luka Jovic landed on his hand. Netherlands had used all their available substitutes at that point, but the concern was great enough for Van de Ven to go off and not be replaced.
However, Xavi eased fears over the issue, saying the defender was light-headed after the painful incident. 'He's okay, he felt dizzy because he suffered with his finger,' said Xavi. 'It's not a big injury.'
Van Hecke also a doubt
Spurs already suffered a scare from the Netherlands camp as Jan Paul van Hecke was forced out of the squad due to a foot injury picked up in the first meeting with Serbia.
'During the match against Serbia, someone stepped on him,' Xavi said last week. 'He didn't realise it during the match, but afterwards it was impossible for him to play. He really wanted to try, but he was in a lot of pain. That is why we decided to take him off the list. He tried to participate in recovery training (on Tuesday). He tried again today, but he couldn't touch the ball.'
Dutch publication Voetbal International reports the 'injury is not serious' and there is hope both Van de Ven and Van Hecke will be fit for the trip to face Manchester United on Saturday.
Xavi pleased with Nations League start
Netherlands finished the international break top of their Nations League group and Xavi is pleased with how things have gone. After Sunday's 2-1 win, which saw Teun Koopmeiners and Joshua Zirkzee score the goals, he said: 'We fought like a family. We really had to suffer.
'We had to defend, but we actually wanted to play possession football. But we couldn't do that, and we couldn't get a grip on the game because of Serbia, who did that really well. But when we switched to a different formation, things got better.
'We now know how to dominate games in different ways. But we also know how to defend at times in a low block or a mid-block. In terms of our core values, I'm very satisfied. The players are wonderful people. But in footballing terms, we need to improve in all sorts of areas.'
