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Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino believes that Argentine compatriot Erik Lamela has finally settled at White Hart Lane, and expects the club's record signing to 'show his quality' next season.
The former Roma star, signed for £30million last summer, struggled to make an impact at the club in season which resulted in the sacking of two managers: Andre Villas-Boas and Tim Sherwood.
Tottenham's summer signings
Having not featured in the final 15 minutes of Tottenham's 3-0 victory over Stoke City back in December, the Argentine has impressed for Pochettino's Spurs so far in pre-season, scoring three goals.
Pochettino believes the 'free style' philosophy he has brought to the club will benefit the 22-year-old, now that he has adapted to life in England.
“It is important to know that Erik is still young and it is difficult to adapt to the Premier League,” Pochettino told The Guardian.
“It is the most difficult league to play – the style, the language, but now, after one year at Tottenham, we believe that Erik is ready to show his quality.”
Lamela was traditionally used on the right-side when playing in Serie A - reaping rewards from cutting inside and craft opportunities to shoot from distance. While Pochettino is expected to mirror this approach, the former Southampton boss has no ruled out the possibilty that Lamela will play off a striker in the coming season.
“It depends on the situation whether Erik will play as the No10 or wide,” Pochettino mused. “My philosophy is to give a free style with a good organisation and not only with Erik, with other players. The most important thing is to create a good shape for our players to be comfortable and to show their real qualities.”
“For me, it’s about exciting football, pressing high and playing with flair,” he continued. “Always the result is important but just as important is the ride you take to get to the result.
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"I have not been given any targets [by Levy] but my personal target is to win every game and then, it is possible you will win some trophies. We want to develop a balanced squad, to put our philosophy into practice and, on top of that, we need results to keep the belief high.”
