'Getting closer' - Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou outlines James Maddison injury return timeline with star midfielder nearing comeback

The English midfielder hurt his ankle ligament during their Premier League loss against crosstown rivals Chelsea on November 6 and has since been out of action. However, Postecoglou remains optimistic that he might return ahead of the FA Cup fourth-round tie against Manchester City on January 26 provided there are no fresh setbacks in the two-week window.

Postecoglou told reporters: "He’s getting closer. He hasn’t trained with the group yet. Obviously, after Man United, we’ve got two weeks and I’ll be hoping between the two Manchester games he’s back training with the first team as long as there’s no setbacks in that two-week window.”

When asked if Maddison will be fit to face City, he said: "It depends when he starts training. If he starts training early next week, potentially, but then again you have to see how they train with the first team, how they feel. He andManor Solomonare the next two that should be fairly close after that (the week after the City game) provided there are no setbacks.”

Tottenham reinforced their squad early in the January transfer window by signing Timo Werneron loan from RB Leipzig and centre-back Radu Dragusin in a €30million (£25.8m) deal from Genoa. They are just a point behind third-placed City and trail leaders Liverpool by six which has stoked title race talks in north London.

Postecoglou believes they are in contention and stressed finishing the campaign on a stronger note than the first phase when injuries and suspensions marred them.

He asked a reporter for their definition of "title race" and was told that Spurs do have a "realistic chance of winning the title".

"Yeah, so by that definition if I say ‘no’ you'd turn round to me and say ‘come on Ange’," added Postecoglou.

"We’ve gone through a really tough period and we’re hanging in there. We had four games when results went against us, but we’ve clawed our way back. We’re still in there. Our performances for the most part have been pretty consistent. But all that is meaningless if we don’t finish the season stronger than the first half of the season and that’s what we’ve got to do."

Postecoglou will be boosted by the return of Micky van de Ven and Cristian Romero before they visit Old Trafford on Sunday. The Lilly-whites had beaten Manchester United earlier in the campaign, and another victory would not only strengthen their title credentials but also help them complete a rare league double since the 1989-90 campaign.