Why Tottenham should not start Erik Lamela against Aston Villa

Tottenham’s transfer activity caused a lot of excitement this summer–and understandably so. They brought in some genuine top quality players. Costing the most was Erik Lamela, with Roma set to collect £30 million from the transfer. But the youngster has so far struggled to get going, showing only glimpses of what he is truly capable of when coming off the bench. He has acknowledged himself that he is struggling.

“The national coach [Alejandro Sabella] called on me when I was in Rome, but now I’m playing in England and I have to adapt quickly,” he said. “English football is more physical and not as tactical as the Italian game, and I talk to my team-mates about that. To keep my place in the national squad I have to make an impression for my club.”

With Spurs visiting Aston Villa this weekend, he will no doubt be pushing for his first league start in order to make the impression he wants. But given his reason for failing to adapt to the league so far, starting at Villa Park isn’t a good idea.

Villa work very hard off the ball and are very aggressive in their attempts to win it back. And given they are at home, they will be especially committed. They have conceded 91 fouls already this season, an average of 13 per game, which is the joint third-most in the league. And on a closely related note, they have collected 15 yellow cards, which is the fourth-most in the league.

Erik Lamela Heat Map v Anzhi

If Lamela were to start on the right-wing, where he has featured the most thus far, he would be up against left-back Antonio “Tony Moon” Luna and Fabian Delph, provided Paul Lambert keeps the 4-3-3 setup he has used in five of the seven games played so far this season. Both Villa players are currently averaging at least three tackles and one foul per game each.

However, if he were to start on the left, he would likely be up against Leandro Bacuna at right-back and Karim El Ahmadi just ahead. Bacuna has attempted an average of 2.2 tackles and committed one foul per game thus far, while El Ahmadi is a lot more aggressive, attempting an average of 4.4 tackles and committing 2.1 fouls per game.

Erik Lamela Take-Ons Last Season

Lamela is quite the dribbler, attempting a high average of 6.9 take-on’s per game last season in Serie A, but if he can’t hold on to the ball because of the physicality of these players and others in the English Premier League, then he would hardly get to use his box of tricks. He has to toughen up over the course of the next few months if he is to prove effective when called upon.

Until then, he may have to make do with cameos off the bench and occasional starts against ideal opposition.