Seventh take on eighth as Wolves travel to London this afternoon for a clash with Tottenham Hotspur, and both teams will see this game as a must-win with Spurs fighting for a place in the top four and Bruno Lage's side hoping to return to a good run of form to secure European football next season.

However, the Portuguese manager has revealed a setback ahead of the game which could put Wolves at a disadvantage against their opponents...

What's the word?

Lage has placed huge doubt over the availability of Hwang Hee-chan after his highly-anticipated return against Arsenal was hit with a setback, and the 45-year-old confirmed fans' fears after the game.

Lage told the media: “I spoke with the doctor and we made the decision for him to come to the stadium. When he arrived he felt his back and he couldn’t move, like a spasm. He was on the bench but it was impossible to put him in the game.”

He further confirmed that the Wolves forward would miss "one or two" days training, which in turn would make him highly doubtful to appear against Spurs this afternoon.

Fans will be gutted

Hwang has now been out of the squad for over a month with a hamstring injury, missing seven games for Wolves, and the inclusion of the winger in the squad against Arsenal would have been thrilling for fans, but now they will surely be gutted that a further setback has emerged in his recovery.

The 26-year-old secured his long term future with Wolves last month after initially joining the club on loan in 2021. Making an impressive impact on the side with four goals and one assist before his injury issues, Lage was keen to complete a permanent deal for the South Korean, who has now sealed his commitment to the club for £14m.

Lage will surely be conscious of the challenge which lies ahead against Spurs, so whilst wanting to choose his strongest team, he will not want to hinder the progress Hwang has made in recent weeks since returning to training. With his back spasm removing him from training for a few days, it will likely see the Molineux faithful needing to wait until next week at the earliest to see him back in action.

It's a case of short-term setback for long-term benefit, but given his status as Wolves' joint-top scorer this term, his absence against a Europe-chasing rival in Spurs will come as a big blow for the Old Gold.

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