Thomas Frank is unsure if Dejan Kulusevski will play for Tottenham this season.
The Swedish star has been out since May 2025 with a rare injury to his kneecap, which required patella cartilage surgery. He is yet to play for Spurs under Frank.
Originally described as “just a knock” by then-manager Ange Postecoglou, with “the medical team not too concerned”, Kulusevski has not set foot on a pitch in the nine months since.
Kulusevski’s rehabilitation has been slow, with Frank stating in January that the midfielder’s recovery “was not going forward as quickly as we thought”, describing it as “complicated” and revealing that Kulusevski required injections to help manage the pain in his knee.
He told reporters: "It's a complicated injury, where it’s important to make sure there’s no pain in the knee. That’s why he got an injection and it hopefully will help. So in three to four weeks’ time, he’ll be on the grass pain-free."
Kulusevski was last week left out of Spurs’ Champions League squad for the remainder of the season, raising fears that he was still some way from returning to fitness.
Issuing an update on Kulusevski’s fitness, ahead of Spurs’ home match against Newcastle, Frank revealed that the player had an appointment at the end of the week to assess his progress.
Asked on Monday if he thinks Kuluseveski will play again this season, Frank admitted: “I don’t know.
"Deki has got another appointment at the end of this week where we will know more, but of course, if he's out of the Champions League squad, it's a sign it is not tomorrow."
