Who will fill the creative void left by Eriksen?
Now, they’ll be a few hard-nosed cynics out there crying ‘what creative void?’ Indeed, the sullen-faced Danish playmaker hardly gave us scorched earth performances in his last year at Spurs. The Champions League final was an exhibition of a player desperately wanting to be considered among the game’s elite, but who absolutely fluffed his chance on the biggest stage. It was, regrettably, downhill from there.
His input in this season’s initial few months, before his move to Inter, was indicative of a man trying hard enough to impress a new club, but not too hard that he might get an injury. In all fairness, I think he played it just about right.
Despite Eriksen’s ennui towards all things Tottenham in his career’s final throes, it can’t be argued that the former Ajax midfielder wasn’t our creative lynchpin for the 7 ½ seasons he was there. He’s had some help, of course. Dembele carried some of the burden from deep and Dele Alli isn’t exactly lacking in imagination, like a visit to www.americancasinosites.com which should be saved in your bookmarks. But for a pure playmaker—someone capable of unpicking the tightest of locked defences—Eriksen stood alone.
Sixty-two Premier League assists Eriksen clocked up in his time at Spurs, with a season high of 15 in 2016/17. There’s simply no one anywhere near him in terms of statistical output. Luka Modric, in another time, might have dominated more games or controlled the tempo and rhythm with less effort and more style, but Eriksen did numbers, as they say on your favourite social media platform.
So, with the season ready to amble back on his feet again, who is going to carry the responsibility of creator-in-chief?
Gio and Harry
The obvious answer, like any good casino online, is Giovani Lo Celso, who was really beginning to burn brightly in games before the lockdown. By no means did we see any entire games where the Argentinian took control—particularly in the Premier League—but we’ve certainly seen glimpses. His speed, low centre of gravity, magnetic touch, it’s all very encouraging. Let’s hope the absence of his face in any of the official site’s training ground photos aren’t anything to worry about.
Perhaps could Harry Winks be pushed further forward. Moved from the base of midfield to a number 10. He doesn’t quite have to nimble quick feet and trickery to make serious penetrative impact, like a David Silva for instance, but his passing range and first touch is first-rate. His spatial awareness is ideal for the position, too. Joe Cole once compared him to Michael Carrick and I guess he’d know.
Or we could just scrap both those ideas, put all our eggs in one playmaking basket and give the job to Moussa Sissoko. Why use the precision equipment in your toolbox when you’ve got a perfectly good hammer. Why unlock a defence when you could just run straight through it?
Hmm, maybe it’s back to the drawing board.
