Josh King
Josh King hurt his hamstring after scoring twice for Norway in their 8-0 drubbing of San Marino on Thursday night

KEY POINTS

  • King ruled out of Norway's final 2018 World Cup qualifier against Northern Ireland this weekend.
  • 25-year-old felt issue after scoring twice for his country in an 8-0 demolition of San Marino on Thursday.

Striker Josh King has emerged as a potential doubt for Bournemouth's Premier League clash with Tottenham Hotspur at Wembley Stadium on 14 October after confirmation that he has sustained an injury while away on international duty.

The 25-year-old notched an early brace for his native Norway in their penultimate 2018 World Cup qualifier against Group C minnows San Marino on Thursday evening (5 October), but was replaced by Saint-Etienne forward Alexander Soderlund in the 62nd minute of an 8-0 hammering in Serravalle due to a hamstring issue.

The Football Association of Norway (NFF) confirmed on Friday that King would not be available for the final game of the campaign against Northern Ireland in Oslo on Sunday and it remains to be seen if the former Manchester United and Blackburn Rovers frontman can recover in time for that trip to Tottenham.

"I felt something in my hamstring during the game yesterday and with my history we're not taking any risks," King told Reuters.

"Myself, [Norway manager] Lars [Lagerback] and the medical team discussed it and agreed that I should go home to get fit again as quickly as possible."

King was linked with a potential £15m ($19.5m) move to Spurs over the summer after notching 16 goals - 13 of which came in the second half of the season - last term to help Bournemouth achieve their highest-ever top-flight finish. He was also mentioned in connection with Everton before ending speculation over his future by putting pen to paper on a new four-year contract in August.

It took until extra-time of a Carabao Cup third-round victory over Brighton & Hove Albion last month for last year's top scorer to get off the mark for the 2017-18 campaign, with King subsequently netting his first league goal of the new season in a 2-1 loss at Everton four days later. He also scored from the spot for Norway in a defeat of Azerbaijan in early September.

Bournemouth boss Eddie Howe will be hoping for a quick recovery from King as his profligate side look to recover from a disappointing start to the season that has seen them collect just four points and one victory from their opening seven matches.

The Cherries have found the back of the net just four times during that span, but will be optimistic that the imminent return of Callum Wilson can help them to covert chances into goals on a more regular basis. The 25-year-old recently made his first appearance for eight months in an Under-23 Premier League Cup win over Norwich City as he steps up his comeback from a second cruciate knee ligament injury suffered in the space of just 16 months.

Defender Tyrone Mings (back) and third-string goalkeeper Adam Federici (knee) will definitely not be fit to face Tottenham, while Harry Arter has trained fully with the Republic of Ireland this week after battling an achilles problem.