Tottenham Hotspur boss Andre Villas-Boas has insisted that Moussa Dembele will not require an operation on his injured hip.

The 25-year-old picked up the knock on international duty with Belgium and has been forced to miss the last five games for his club.

"We could either give him surgery immediately, but there is no certainty it will cure the problem, or he could rest, have manual therapy, train in the swimming pool," Villas Boas told reporters.

"That allows the player the possibility of return within 10-15 days, so we are taking that option at the moment, without having the surgery."

Dembele joined Spurs from Fulham in the summer.