Tottenham star faces lengthy ban after making inappropriate comments, will miss crucial games

Despite achieving comprehensive wins over Manchester United and Aston Villa and scoring more goals than any other team in the league, Tottenham Hotspur currently find themselves in tenth place in the Premier League table.

However, Sunday's 2-1 defeat to Ipswich underlined some key issues facing the North London outfit which have only been amplified by headache selections plaguing the side.

Tottenham star set to miss crucial games

The Lilywhites have already had to deal with issues to key players such as Dominic Solanke, Micky van de Ven and Heung-Min Son all facing respective issues at different points of the campaign so far.

Despite the injuries, Spurs have managed to field a fairly consistent midfield, with Rodrigo Bentancur and Dejan Kulusevski's consistent performances and availability pivotal to any good moments the side has enjoyed so far.

However, this midfield has been hit by a major blow as Bentancur has been hit with a massive seven-game ban from the FA for racially motivated comments made over the summer in reference towards teammate Heung-Min Son.

The 27-year-old midfielder was charged with an “aggravated breach” of FA rules in September after a video emerged from Uruguayan television in which Bentancur suggested that Son "looks the same" as his Asian compatriots.

Get FourFourTwo Newsletter

The best features, fun and footballing quizzes, straight to your inbox every week.

Contact me with news and offers from other Future brandsReceive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsorsBy submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

The Uruguayan replied: “Sonny’s or a cousin of Sonny’s? They all look the same, more or less.” when asked to provide a shirt from Spurs' famous number seven, sparking an investigation by the FA.

The FA have since handed the 27-year-old a ban of at least six games, charging Bentancur with using abusive language and acting in a manner which brought the game into disrepute.

The club are believed to have questioned the FA’s ability to charge Bentancur as the comments were made on international duty, while the player himself apologised to Son privately shortly after the interview was broadcast, as well as issuing a public apology on social media.

The midfielder, who has failed to start just one league game so far this season, will now miss key fixtures against Manchester City and Chelsea.