Kulusevski reaches Tottenham recovery milestone after long absence
Dejan Kulusevski has played his first 11-a-side game after more than 500 days out, a meaningful step in his Tottenham recovery but no confirmation that a competitive return is imminent. He featured in a training match at Hotspur Way during the international break, as the club continues to build his fitness carefully.
Standard Sport reported the appearance, which it said was first reported by the Daily Mail. Kulusevski has not played for club or country since May 2025, after a complicated kneecap injury that required two surgeries over 10 months. His long absence and earlier setback after returning to first-team training make this progress notable, rather than a reason to start pencilling him into the next team sheet. The length of Kulusevski’s injury absence has made every stage of his rehabilitation matter.
A milestone, not a matchday promise
Kulusevski played for a side made up of first-team players against an opposing team of Tottenham Under-21 and Under-18 players. The available report does not say how many minutes he managed or what impact he had, so the appearance offers no reliable measure of his readiness for Premier League football.
It is a concrete rehabilitation milestone, and a welcome one after a recovery that has hardly followed a straight line. But an 11-a-side training match is not a competitive appearance, and Tottenham have not confirmed when he will be available for selection or when he might make his first appearance under Roberto De Zerbi.
Tottenham continue to manage his progress
The club are taking a cautious approach, with Kulusevski’s progress managed by Tottenham’s revamped medical department, led by performance director Dan Lewindon. That is the sensible reading of this update: he has advanced to a full-sided training game, but the report does not establish that he is ready for Premier League minutes.
There is no confirmed timetable for his return to contention. Spurs will need to judge his recovery over time rather than treat one encouraging session as a shortcut, particularly after the setback that interrupted his first return to team training. The uncertainty around Kulusevski’s return remains; for now, the next step is continued, carefully managed rehabilitation.
