Kudus World Cup hopes in danger after injury setback

Ghana and Tottenham Hotspur forward Mohammed Kudus is facing an anxious race against time to be fit for the FIFA World Cup 2026 after suffering a setback in his recovery from injury.

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The 24-year-old had been working his way back from a serious quad tendon injury he sustained during Tottenham's Premier League draw against Sunderland in January — a problem that had already kept him sidelined for several months. His return had appeared to be on the horizon last month, when Spurs' then-interim head coach Igor Tudor expressed cautious optimism about the winger's progress.

"So we have these three weeks after the game on Sunday. He will probably do some part of the things with the squad maybe 10 days [after the break]," the Croatian coach told Football London at the time.

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"I don't know, I'm not sure. We need to check, but he is progressing very well. Already a little bit with the ball."

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However, those hopes have since been dealt a significant blow. Kudus has not trained with the Spurs squad since Tudor gave that assessment and has now aggravated the same injury. While the precise nature of the new setback has not been disclosed, the situation is serious enough that Kudus is now expected to miss the remainder of the Premier League season.

More worryingly for Ghana, the timing puts his participation in the Black Stars' World Cup campaign in June in serious jeopardy.