The Dane’s stats look far more impressive than the England international’s for Tottenham Hotspur this season.
Tottenham Hotspur recorded a terrific result away in Turin on Tuesday against Juventus, coming from two goals down to record a 2-2 draw to take back to Wembley ahead of the second leg.
Two early Gonzalo Higuain goals were cancelled out by brilliant efforts by Harry Kane and Christian Eriksen in a stunning display of football by the North London side in the second half.
England youngster Dele Alli, 21, often grabs the headlines following Spurs games, whether that be for his characteristic influential performances or on occasion for his less positive efforts.
However, going by the stats, it appears that Alli’s midfield colleague Eriksen is the integral cog at the club, whose efforts and influence at Tottenham are only really comparable to Harry Kane’s.
Not to suggest that Eriksen is in any way undervalued or underrated by Tottenham or general Premier League fans; the Dane has been sublime since arriving from Ajax as a youngster in 2013. Eriksen has played a vital role in a number of different positions for the club and, along with Kane and Lloris, has been up there with the club’s most consistent performers since their rise to prominence.
Despite often being deployed on the right, with Alli being preferred in the central position behind the striker, it appears that Eriksen is the real creative link between Tottenham’s midfield and Kane.
This season, Eriksen has out-passed Alli by 607, and has made double the amount of through balls than the 21-year-old.
Despite Alli’s reputation as a goal-scorer, the Dane has also enjoyed 28 shots on target compared to Alli’s 11, and has even outscored him in the league with seven goals compared to five.
In Alli’s defence, Eriksen has five years more experience at senior level and should be hitting his peak, with the England star still very much developing as a player. If anything, the former MK Dons prospect has the perfect role model in Eriksen, and should aspire to reach his teammate’s level in time.
If Alli can begin to add set pieces to his game at the same level as Eriksen, this can only bode well for Tottenham and England going forward.
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