Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino said on Thursday he is confident England striker Harry Kane will play again this season, though he refused to put a timescale on his return.

Kane limped off with his side trailing 1-0 at Bournemouth on Sunday, before Pochettino’s men bounced back to win 4-1 and move up to third in the Premier League.

The injury sparked fears of a lengthy absence for England’s key man with just three months to go until the start of the World Cup in Russia.

Kane has suffered lateral ligament damage in his right ankle and Spurs said on Wednesday he would return to training next month.

That prognosis was described as “preliminary” but Pochettino expects to have Kane available for Spurs’ Premier League run-in, with a top-four finish in their sights.

“Yes, of course,” the Argentine said on prospects of a return before the end of the campaign.

“We want to help him recover as soon as possible from his injury, that’s the first step, to be fully recovered from the injury. Then we will see, it’s two or three weeks, we don’t know. We need to assess every day.”

“Disappointing to be out until next month but injuries are part of the game,” Kane tweeted on Wednesday. “Will do everything I can to get back out there asap (as soon as possible).”

Spurs, knocked out of the Champions League last week by Italian champions Juventus, travel to Swansea for an FA Cup quarter-final on Saturday.