Ryan Mason started £12m Tottenham player in behind closed doors friendly

By Sam Preston

Ryan Mason handed Tottenham captain Hugo Lloris his first action since his injury in a behind-closed-doors friendly with Ipswich.

With Antonio Conte still in Italy, Mason took charge of a friendly against the high-flying League 1 club managed by former Tottenham coach Kieran McKenna.

Lloris played in the 70-minute game as Spurs lost 3-2 to the Tractor Boys, as per the Standard, as Japhet Tanganga and Lucas Moura scored the goals.

The £12 million man had not played since his knee injury in the 1-0 win over Manchester City last month, with Fraser Forster deputising.

Ryan Mason hands Hugo Lloris Tottenham injury comeback vs Ipswich

Those performances made Forster the man Gareth Southgate turned to when Nick Pope had to pull out of the first England squad of 2023.

Conte would seemingly have had Lloris back in the team as soon as possible, but there may soon be a new manager picking the team.

It seems the Italian is going to be sacked when he is back from his break, but it remains to be seen what Spurs do in the interim.

They could appoint Mason as a caretaker until the end of the season, although that would run the risk of the campaign fizzling out.

They can still qualify for next season’s Champions League, which may prove important when it comes to attracting players in the summer.

That could also have a bearing on player departures too, but Spurs fans will be hoping Lloris comes back less error-prone than he was in the months before his absence.