Soccer: Anderton suffers another injury blow

Spurs may be up to second in the table after last night's 3-2 comeback against Everton but George Graham and Kevin Keegan will both be dismayed by the news of Darren Anderton's latest injury crisis. The England midfielder sustained a serious groin injury during the game, which forced him off after a mere 17 minutes. Anderton, nicknamed Sicknote by his fellow team mates because of his lengthy spells out of football due to injury, has already undergone two abdominal operations during his professional career. "I don't know how bad it is and I never like to put a time on these things at such an early stage. But I spoke to the club doctor who said that it was quite a serious groin problem and will probably take some time to put right," explained Graham.

"It is bad luck for Darren because in the two years while I have been here he's done very well with his fitness and been excellent, picking up only the one bad knock that kept him out for a while last season. We'll just have to wait and see what the diagnosis is when the medical people have the opportunity to make a full examination," added the Spurs boss. This latest injury will likely rule Anderton out of Kevin Keegan's plans for England's World Cup Qualifier against Germany on October 7. Anderton made an impressive comeback in the 1-1 draw with France last weekend after ruling himself out of the England squad for Euro 2000 last summer so that he could get fully fit for the 2000-01 season.

Meanwhile, Spurs newboy Sergei Rebrov was the hero at White Hart Lane last night as he was instrumental in their comeback against Everton. The Toffees had taken a 2-0 lead thanks to some bad defending by Spurs. Francis Jeffers pounced after a poor back pass from Ben Thatcher for the first while Ghanaian midfielder Alex Nyarko scored the second. However, Rebrov pulled one back just before half-time with his first goal for Spurs and he made it two after the break from the penalty spot when Thomas Graveson handled in the area. Les Ferdinand, who was making his first start for the London club in almost a year, scored the winner just minutes later. Afterwards, Graham said: "I think Rebrov will soon take over David Ginola's role as the idol of White Hart Lane. There's still more to come from him. He's still feeling his way but the fans are going to love him once he has settled here completely. He seems a cool little character, not too excitable and very intelligent."

Filed by Amanda Fennelly