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The question of time and Eriksen

5 min read
by Bardi
A lot of time has passed since Eriksen arrived at Spurs. The club has changed, the team and our expectations, but has our Danish playmaker? Questions are starting to be asked about his worth, how much we need him and where should he play? It's time for Eriksen to show us.

Time. A component which we use to quantify our lives, our experiences and the effect of our actions. Occasionally you think you have it, but the truth is you don’t. It’s slipping away all the time. At this very second what you thought, did or couldn’t be bothered to do has been judged by time.

It is something which in the end will kill us all. We all run out of it eventually. It is something that has had me thinking these last few days, not in the grand conceptual way, but in the way of Spurs, as most things do to be honest. What effect has time had on this squad?

At the centre of my thoughts around time and what it means is a little Dane who has been discussed at length across many platforms. Christian Eriksen has been at Spurs for some time now, but what exactly is he doing with his time? How has time judged him?

Since Pochettino arrived at Spurs it has been agreed there has been progression. The club has moved forward, training, fitness, tactics and even self-confidence. The meteoric trajectory we’ve been on has been made all the more spectacular because we started at such a low point. This is in no small part down to the Argentine and his ability to push players up that hill of performance.

[linequote]In the darkest days of AVB and Sherwood we could cling to Eriksen, he made Ozil look sh*te, he was the player we would look to[/linequote]

Pochettino arrived and set about turning Mousa Dembele and Danny Rose from Twitter fodder to un-droppable pillars of brilliance. Ryan Mason for all his faults excelled to a point where he earned an England cap, Harry Kane was a meme and Eric Dier an average right sided defender, but no more. All have gone on to be something more than what was expected for them, but not Eriksen, he is still Eriksen.

When Pochettino arrived the Dane was already a magnificent player. Gifted, hailed, title winner and flag bearer for Danish football, a country that knows about attacking players. In the darkest days of AVB and Sherwood we could cling to Eriksen, he made Ozil look sh*te, he was the player we would look to, but over time the focus has shifted.

For the last two season Eriksen has changed from the man to one of the men. From leader to pack member, whose actions although still important are no longer as decisive as they once were. This piece isn’t about his strengths or weaknesses, it’s more about acknowledging that today there are more important players in our ranks. If pushed to decide whom out of the following is most expendable: Lloris, Alderweireld, Dembele, Lamela, Kane, Rose or Eriksen, I would say the Dane every time.

He isn’t a bad player he just isn’t as good, or important to us as the others have now become.

How did this happen? What has caused the questioning of Eriksen to even start?

The fact is we’ve got better, we’ve improved across the board, Eriksen hasn’t.

In the time he’s been at Spurs we’ve been unable to fit him into a role, or a build a team around him. In his first years at the club, Luka Modric was side-lined in a similar role, playing wide for “protection” as he was “too lightweight,” however, he changed his game and today is one of the best centre midfielders in the world. Eriksen hasn’t had this sort of progression.

[linequote] A lot of time has passed since Lamela and Eriksen arrived, one has moved forward while the other has tread water[/linequote]

When The Magnificent Seven arrived Eriksen was hailed as the success, today with Lamela having come through a tortuous first season and sticky second, now entering his fourth season the Argentine is perhaps our biggest success from The 7. His physique has changed, he is more confident and his attitude and aggression are pure Pochettino, added to this he is now starting to score and assist regularly, you have a player that rivals Eriksen’s status.

Last season Eriksen may have knocked up a few more goals and assists than Lamela, but the gap has closed. A lot of time has passed since Lamela and Eriksen arrived, one has moved forward while the other has tread water. Last season was the Dane’s lowest haul of Premier League goals since he arrived at Spurs. In a team that has got better and better, he is failing to ride the wave of improvement. This leads me back once again to the question:

Pochettino has a system, his players have a role, but what is Eriksen’s?

The emergence of Dembele as an iron clad marauding playmaker, alongside the athletic box to box dynamism of Dele Alli usurped Eriksen from the central duo next to Dier. He doesn’t have the skill set to replace the Belgian or young Englishman. Instead he has been continually played wide left where he can drift infield on to his right foot.

At his best Eriksen changed games, won games, took Spurs to a Capital One cup final and was a crossbar away from putting them in the lead, but those days have become few and far between. Last season City and Swansea away, where he scored half of all his league goals, were the only times where he was truly decisive. From wide left he is effective but my concern is, does he change games regularly enough from wide areas like a specialist wide man would?

[linequote]Eriksen is a good player, but I am starting to get the feeling that we are the wrong fit for him, unless he develops into a deeper laying playmaker, or adds some explosiveness to his game[/linequote]

If Son, a player of huge potential finds his feet and plays to the level he is rumoured to have, wouldn’t our team be bettered balanced with him one side of Kane, Lamela the other? Direct, quick, skillful runners either side of Kane. Wouldn’t that suit us better? This is the issue with Eriksen. Of all the roles within Pochettino’s strategy, it is his that if I had a free reign to upgrade, I would upgrade.

If given the opportunity to sign a Julian Draxler level of player, would you say no because “we have Eriksen?”

Eriksen is a good player, but I am starting to get the feeling that we are the wrong fit for him, unless he develops into a deeper laying playmaker, or adds some explosiveness to his game. His quality isn’t in doubt, but his suitability is. This season is key for him. He’s been questioned by his international coach and now concerns are rising domestically.

He needs to define himself, to find a role and a place, time as ever though, isn’t his or anyone else’s friend.

All views and opinions expressed in this article are the views and opinions of the writer and do not necessarily represent the views of The Fighting Cock. We offer a platform for fans to commit their views to text and voice their thoughts. Football is a passionate game and as long as the views stay within the parameters of what is acceptable, we encourage people to write, get involved and share their thoughts on the mighty Tottenham Hotspur.

Bardi

Paulinho was before his time

5 Comments

  1. Patrick
    19/08/2016 @ 9:51 am

    Well, Eriksen covers most mileage in this team, is crucial in transitions on the break and have split vision that he shares with Lamela. That said he is not agressive enough as you implicate and that is his homework he has to work on to add mastery to his talent.

    • Dave
      19/08/2016 @ 11:13 am

      Eriksen stats in PL – 23 goals and 23assists in 3 years . Lamela stats in the same period in PL – 8 goals and 17 assists – it’s a ‘no brainer’. Eriksen is a clever player , with great attitude , work rate and above all – skill. I think he will mature further and grow into that elite group of European midfielders that calmly control games like Pirlo. I enjoyed your article but I think it needs balance.

  2. AT
    19/08/2016 @ 11:56 am

    Very good read, Bardi.

    I think he still brings a lot of value. Like Patrick says he is regularly top of the ‘distance covered’ chart each game, and still has an eye for a game-changing pass or strike. However, I think his role has changed somewhat – previously he was the one who would make the assist, whereas now he often assists the assister. Look at our goals from last season and so many of them have Eriksen heavily involved two or three passes before the goal is scored. Like you say, we have more creative players now, meaning we are not as reliant on him to play that final ball. My only real criticism is that he can sometimes slow down play and waste a potential counter attack. Having said that, I agree that he is a lot more replaceable than he was a year or two ago. But I certainly wouldn’t get rid of him unless we definitely have someone better to come in.

    • Spur Fan in NY
      22/08/2016 @ 5:40 pm

      Your argument would make sense if Eriksen had not had the second most assists (15) and chances created in the BPL last year. You are right that he also was important in the passes that assisted the final assist. It just shows how important he is to the team. In the first week, Dele and Kane were terrible and barely a word. Eriksen is poor the second game and people are calling for him to be sold or dropped. Most Tottenham fans don’t have a clue about football and will never understand what Eriksen brings to the team.

  3. Sean
    19/08/2016 @ 11:59 am

    This is wrong on so many levels. Pochettino took over at a low point? In the last 7 seasons we have finished 6th or higher every season. As the 6th richest club that means that we have met and – in all but one season -exceeded expectations. Pochettino has done a good job but the only meteoric rise in English football is Leicester. As for Ericksen we don’t have anyone else with his creativity. Sure we could get Draxler or some other big name but Eriksen is our player and doing a fine job too.

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