Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino has confirmed that Ryan Mason, Mousa Dembele and Nabil Bentaleb will all miss the Capital One Cup clash against Arsenal through injury.
Spurs entertain their north London counterparts at White Hart Lane and will be keen to secure a victory over their city rivals but the game has come to soon for the midfield trio.
The Argentine coach believes that all three players are closing in on a return to Spurs' first-team fold after overseeing training on Tuesday but will have to explore other options for the visit of Arsene Wenger's men.
"Mousa, Ryan and Nabil are still out," Pochettino told the club's official website. "Their progression is very good, they are close to being back with the squad but not for Wednesday, unlucky for them and for us."
Dembele was substituted during the 0-0 draw with Everton nursing a foot injury prior to the international break and initially hoped that he would be able to make his comeback in Spurs' next game.
However, both he and Nabil Bentaleb have failed to feature for Spurs since the stalemate with the Toffees. The Algeria international suffered a knee injury in training and is yet to prove his fitness.
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Mason, meanwhile, picked up a knee complaint in the process of scoring the winning goal against Sunderland earlier in the month.
The England international's absence could open the door for Dele Alli to continue in a central midfield role alongside Eric Dier as Spurs plot a route into the fourth round at the expense of their rivals.
