Harry Kane has been ruled out of Tottenham Hotspur’s trip to Old Trafford on Saturday lunchtime to face Manchester United, Mauricio Pochettino has confirmed.

The Englishman sat out the midweek EFL Cup defeat to West Ham as the Spurs manager rotated his squad ahead of this weekend’s huge clash with United, but he will now not play a part.

Kane limped off towards the end of Spurs’ 4-1 thumping of Liverpool last weekend after scoring twice following a twinge to his hamstring, and Pochettino has now said he doesn’t want to risk the 24-year-old with the return game against Real Madrid on the horizon.

Tottenham vs Liverpool player ratings Show all 23 1 /23 Tottenham vs Liverpool player ratings Tottenham vs Liverpool player ratings <b>Tottenham:</b> Hugo Lloris - 7 His hesitation allowed Salah to score Liverpool’s first but he more than made up for it in the second half with a stupendous save from Coutinho. Getty Tottenham vs Liverpool player ratings Davinson Sanchez - 7 Has slotted into the centre of Tottenham’s defence with ease. Exudes class. Getty Tottenham vs Liverpool player ratings Toby Alderweireld - 7 Not overly troubled too often but maintained a high level throughout. Getty Tottenham vs Liverpool player ratings Jan Vertonghen - 7 Unlucky not to score Tottenham’s fourth after his shot was blocked on the line but can probably claim an assist after Kane tucked home the rebound. Getty Tottenham vs Liverpool player ratings Kieran Trippier - 7 Helped kick things off for Spurs with the assist for Kane’s early opener. Getty Tottenham vs Liverpool player ratings Harry Winks - 7 Understatedly good. Keeps things ticking over in the middle of the park and allows others to grab the headlines. Could be the long-term answer to England’s deep-lying midfield problems. Getty Tottenham vs Liverpool player ratings Christian Eriksen - 7 Outshone Coutinho in a battle of two of the Premier League’s best playmakers. Getty Tottenham vs Liverpool player ratings Serge Aurier - 8 Deployed at left wing-back to match Mo Salah’s pace and marshalled him well. Getty Tottenham vs Liverpool player ratings Dele Alli - 8 Yet to hit the heights of last season but was superb in a slightly deeper role today and scored Spurs’ third. Getty Tottenham vs Liverpool player ratings Son Hueng-min - 7 Always runs himself into the ground. Scored Spurs’ second and almost had a third minutes later when his well-struck effort cannoned off the crossbar from a tight angle. Getty Tottenham vs Liverpool player ratings Harry Kane - 9 Scored two and assisted another. He’s frighteningly good. Does anybody still think he’s not world class? Getty Tottenham vs Liverpool player ratings <b>Liverpool:</b> Simon Mignolet - 4 Might’ve done better for Kane’s opener and was fully at fault for his second after flapping at a cross. Getty Tottenham vs Liverpool player ratings Joe Gomez - 5 Was asked to fill in at centre-back for the last hour of the match. Wasn’t great but wasn’t solely responsible for any of Liverpool’s goals, unlike some of his teammates. Getty Tottenham vs Liverpool player ratings Joel Matip - 4 Suicidal defensive header allowed Alli to score Spurs’ third goal in first-half injury time. Getty Tottenham vs Liverpool player ratings Dejan Lovren - 1 One of the worst individual performances you’re ever likely to see. At fault for Spurs’ two early goals and hooked – without an injury – after half an hour. Getty Tottenham vs Liverpool player ratings Alberto Moreno - 5 He’s one of the few improved players in Liverpool’s defence this season. Getty Tottenham vs Liverpool player ratings Emre Can - 4 A poor day at the office for Can after a good start to the season. He was subbed late on just minutes after Alli had nut-megged him with a sublime piece of skill. Getty Tottenham vs Liverpool player ratings Jordan Henderson - 6 Liverpool’s best midfielder on the day and his pass for Salah’s goal was fantastic. As always, you can’t fault his work rate. Getty Tottenham vs Liverpool player ratings James Milner - 5 Couldn’t deal with Son’s pace for Spurs’ second goal. Getty Tottenham vs Liverpool player ratings Philippe Coutinho - 5 He was quiet on a day when Liverpool could’ve done with a moment of magic to spark them into action. Was denied a second-half goal by a superb Lloris save. Getty Tottenham vs Liverpool player ratings Mohamed Salah - 6 Scored Liverpool’s only goal of the game but sometimes his one-footedness really counts against him. Getty Tottenham vs Liverpool player ratings Roberto Firmino - 5 Came up with a brilliant goal-line clearance but it ended up counting for nothing as Kane tucked home the rebound. Offered little at the other end of the pitch. Getty Tottenham vs Liverpool player ratings Substitutes Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain 5

Daniel Sturridge N/A

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Speaking in his press conference on Friday ahead of the clash between the Premier League's second and third-placed teams, Pochettino said: “We cannot take a risk for tomorrow, we'll see after for Wednesday. But tomorrow, it is impossible.

“It is a blow? Yes. You always want all the players available. It’s a problem. We want them available to play.

“We always believe in the collective, the squad. During the season, problems happen and you must trust all the players, all the squad. I’ve told you the players are not machines and it’s so difficult to cope with international duty, playing every three days. It’s lucky it’s not a big problem but he’s not going to play tomorrow.”

When asked if Kane has tried to push to play through the injury, Pochettino said: “No, no. It’s a decision from the doctor and medical staff not to take a risk. It’s no sense to take a risk when the problem is small and we can fix it in a few days, probably.”