The Argentine midfielder has not played in over a year but has rejoined Tottenham Hotspur training.
Erik Lamela has not played for Tottenham Hotspur since October 2016.
As The Guardian reports, the Argentine has returned to Spurs training following a long-standing hip injury, but there is no timescale on when he will be considered for selection again by Mauricio Pochettino.
The 25-year-old had overcome a shaky start to life in the Premier League to become a key figure for Spurs prior to his lengthy layoff, starting 28 games in their title tilt during the 2015-16 campaign.
But one major change at Tottenham means that Lamela may struggle to ever get his regular starting spot back.
Pochettino has switched from a 4-2-3-1 formation, in which Lamela would be the first choice on the right wing, to a variation of a 3-4-3 system in which he operates with a trio of central defenders.
With Dele Alli and Christian Eriksen almost undroppable, the extra attacking midfielder that was either Son Heung-min or Lamela has been sacrificed for defensive stability and width provided by wing-backs.
Tottenham don’t score too many goals from outside of their three forward positions – just three in the league so far this season – and therefore all of Pochettino’s attackers must be proven goalscorers.
Lamela has eight goals in 85 league matches for Spurs, with a season’s best of five in 2015-16.
Although he is the most effective at pressing of Tottenham’s attacking midfielders, and just as creative, the South American does not have the goalscoring pedigree to usurp Eriksen, Alli or even Son from the team.
It will be interesting to see how, and how often, Lamela is used upon returning to full fitness, but the former Roma winger may have to reinvent his game if he is to reestablish himself in Pochettino’s lineup.
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