5 current Premier League players who have shifted positions successfully

Gareth
Gareth Bale's shift from left back to left winger saw him tear Premier League defences apart while at Spurs

#1 Christian Eriksen

A.F.C. Bournemouth v Tottenham Hotspur - Premier League
The Dane is elite material

One quality that Mauricio Pochettino greatly values in his players is tactical versatility. This obviously entails the ability to slot in seamlessly into different positions.

Christian Eriksen has all the makings of an elite creative playmaker. But in England, where defences are set up narrowly, there is very little breathing space on offer for no. 10s. Thus, when Pochettino handed the no.10 duties to Dele Alli in a bid to free up Eriksen by moving him to the flanks, there was only going to be one outcome. Success.

That is not to say that Eriksen has been converted into an out and out winger. He just starts out wide and is thus able to be in a position where when Spurs are on the offensive, their creative outlets do not have their back against the goal and are instead, facing it.

He needed to up his defensive output to win his place back in Pochettino's plans and the unrelenting hard-worker he is, Eriksen improved on that aspect of his game.

Eriksen roams about the final third vigilantly looking for spaces and weaknesses to exploit. His expertise in striking the dead ball has earned him the nickname of Golazo (meaning 'screamer') among his teammates.

The Dane has been crucial to Tottenham's great run of form in the recent past and he has proved that a change in position cannot strip him of his great footballing riches. His ice-cool demeanour and lily-white technique are of a class of their own. He is the archetypal catalyst and the fact that he created the most number of chances in the Premier League last season is a testament to his abilities.

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