Dejan Kulusevski's Battle for World Cup Spot
Dejan Kulusevski has been fighting the clock for a year now. Not a title race, not a top‑four push – a battle with his own body and the brutal reality of a patella injury that simply refused to let go.
Out since May 2025, the Tottenham winger has spent his season in treatment rooms and gyms, not stadiums. A gruelling rehabilitation, a minor follow‑up procedure, and endless hours at Hotspur Way have replaced the roar of crowds. All of it for a single target: to squeeze himself onto Graham Potter’s Sweden plane to the World Cup in North America this summer.
De Zerbi’s doubt, Kulusevski’s defiance
Roberto De Zerbi did not sugar-coat the situation when asked about the forward’s prospects.
“I don’t know the situation well. For me, it’s difficult to understand how he can play at the World Cup if he didn’t play any games this season,” the Spurs head coach admitted. It was a blunt assessment, the kind players usually hear behind closed doors.
Yet there was a different note when he spoke about their recent contact. De Zerbi revealed he had texted Kulusevski after the win over Aston Villa. The reply carried a hint of hope.
“He told me in the next week, I think, he comes back [to continue his rehab at Hotspur Way]. And I hope he can be available to stay with us in the last game because he is an amazing player.”
That last line matters. De Zerbi isn’t counting on him, but he clearly wants him around. Even a cameo in the final fixture would be a symbolic victory for a player who has not kicked a competitive ball all season.
Kulusevski, though, is not living on symbols. He is talking about history.
“I haven't played in a year. I know what the chances are,” he told Viaplay earlier. “But if there is one person on the planet who can do this, I would bet on myself.”
It was more than standard player bravado. Sweden missed the 2022 World Cup. For a former Juventus talent who sees himself as a standard-bearer for his country, that cut deep. Now he speaks like a man on a mission.
“And we are not just going there to participate. Sweden will aim to be one of the best. As long as I live, I will do everything I can so that Sweden, when we go out and play, will not be afraid of anyone. Brazil, France, whoever they are. That's why I'm on this planet. To give faith and love to my people.”
The gap between that rhetoric and his current reality is enormous. No games, limited training, and a race against both the calendar and medical logic. But he has nailed his colours to the mast. If Sweden make room for a late wildcard, he wants to be it.
Richarlison scare eased
While Kulusevski battles in the background, Spurs had a more immediate scare this week.
Richarlison, fresh from a key role in the 2-1 win over Aston Villa, was absent from training on Wednesday. He had scored in the first half and worked tirelessly before being substituted late on, a change that sparked whispers of another setback for a player whose time in England has been punctuated by injuries.
De Zerbi moved quickly to shut that down. No alarm, just exhaustion.
“Yes [he missed training] because he worked very hard [against Villa],” the Italian explained. “I think my mistake was not to substitute him before the end of the game. But Richarlison was playing very well, he was important in the set-pieces and he played a great game. But just fatigue.”
For once, the word “fatigue” sounded like good news. In a season where any absence has tended to come with a medical report attached, Tottenham will gladly take tired legs over torn muscles.
Spurs claw clear – and cling to options
That victory over Villa did more than soothe nerves over one player. It dragged Tottenham out of the Premier League relegation zone and gave a beleaguered squad some breathing space at the sharp end of a difficult campaign.
The stakes now are clear. Survive first, rebuild later.
Inside the club, the medical staff have become as central to that fight as any playmaker. Managing minutes, trimming workloads, and trying to keep a fragile group on the pitch for three more league games has become the daily obsession. De Zerbi wants as many options as possible for the run-in; in truth, he needs them.
Leeds await on Monday night. Chelsea and Everton close the season. Three fixtures that will decide whether this year is remembered as a narrow escape or a full-blown crisis.
Kulusevski may yet appear on that stage, even briefly, as he pushes through the final phase of his rehab at Hotspur Way. Richarlison is expected to be there from the start, fatigue permitting.
For Spurs, the equation is simple now: keep their best players upright, keep scraping results, and make sure this season ends with a sense of survival rather than regret. For Kulusevski, the calculation is even harsher.
If he wants to lead Sweden into a World Cup unafraid of Brazil, France or anyone else, his first challenge is far more basic.
He has to get back on the pitch.
