Emmanuel Adebayor must turn up for class to avoid a ticking off

Tottenham were expecting Emmanuel Adebayor to return to the club today with the striker needing to report for this afternoon’s training session to avoid possible disciplinary action.

When most of the squad resumed training yesterday in preparation for tomorrow’s match against Newcastle, Adebayor (above) was not present, even though Togo were knocked out of the Africa Cup of Nations last Sunday.

Andre Villas-Boas planned to name Adebayor in his squad for the lunchtime fixture at White Hart Lane. The head coach granted special dispensation to Clint Dempsey and Benoit Assou-Ekotto, who played for the United States and Cameroon respectively in midweek, to return a day later than most of their colleagues.

Yet no such permission is thought to have been granted originally to Adebayor. Villas-Boas insisted he was relaxed about the situation but with Jermain Defoe facing a long absence due to ankle ligament damage, Adebayor is the club’s only available senior centre-forward.

After Adebayor’s exertions in the Cup of Nations, where he helped Togo reach the quarter-finals, he was granted three days off. But Tottenham are keen for the former Arsenal player to focus again on club duties as they try to cement their position in the top four.

If he believes that Adebayor is not ready to start the match, Dempsey is likely to play as a lone forward, although Villas-Boas did not rule out using Gareth Bale as a striker.