The Argentine is in Tottenham Hotspur fans’ bad books at the moment.
Quoted by The Hertfordshire Mercury and speaking to Tottenham Hotspur’s matchday program, Darren Anderson has admitted he loves Erik Lamela as a player.
The Argentine winger is one of the most improved players at Tottenham since Mauricio Pochettino took the reins over two years ago.
His slender frame made him a little lightweight for the rough and tumble of the Premier League early in his Spurs career, but Lamela has developed a toughness to his game in recent seasons which has seen him improve off the ball.
But it is his mentality which Anderton is particularly impressed by, claiming that the 24-year-old is strong enough mentally to put disappointments to one side and focus on helping the Lilywhites’ cause.
“What I love about him is, even if things aren’t going well, he’s brave, he never ever hides, he always wants the ball and he pops up with some important goals,” said Anderton, speaking to Spurs’ matchday program via The Hertfordshire Mercury
“Some players in his position can be a little bit lightweight and not tackle, not track back, not help their team-mates or their full-back behind them, but he does that.
“He gets in the box for opportunities, when he comes inside he always wants the ball and when we lose it he works his socks off to get it back and that’s what the manager craves from his players.”
Lamela has become a popular figure among Tottenham fans in recent years, but he angered quite a lot of them on Sunday.
With Spurs winning 2-0 at home to Manchester City, the former Roma man missed a penalty to add a third in an incident which frustrated supporters, after he refused to let Son Hueng-min – who had five goals in as many games – take the spot kick.
Some HITC readers were critical of him in an article on Monday, while he was also the subject of rants from many Twitter users.
Tottenham’s Dele Alli celebrates scoring their second goal with Erik Lamela
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