Jan Vertonghen has backed Harry Kane and Christian Eriksen to reach Gareth Bale’s level during their time at Tottenham.

Bale’s 26 goals in the 2012/13 season made him the most coveted player in Europe and earned him a world-record £86million move to Real Madrid two years ago.

But with 31 goals between them this term, Kane and Eriksen have been similarly influential. Kane has scored 20 times already and was yesterday rewarded with a new five-and-a-half-year contract by his boyhood club.

Vertonghen believes Kane’s form, and that of Eriksen, is turning Spurs into a better team than the one inspired by Bale.

“Are we more complete? Yes, probably,” he said. “We had a very good side in my first season (2012-13) as well, but Gareth was just outstanding, even a class higher than what we have now.

“But we’ve got a couple of guys who can achieve the same performances as he did and they’re on their way. Harry and Christian are just unbelievable players.

“We’re more complete, we still have a long way to go but what we are doing now is unbelievable. At the beginning of the season we had some problems creating chances but now they’re coming from everywhere, which is what we want.

“Nacer Chadli is back now, our full-backs are doing a great job and we’re becoming a more rounded side. We can score from anywhere.”

Vertonghen’s optimism reflects a run of just one defeat in nine league games for Mauricio Pochettino’s team but the greatest tests lie in wait.

On Saturday, Spurs tackle the north London derby at White Hart Lane against an Arsenal side who are finding form themselves after seven wins in their last eight matches in all competitions.

Three days later, Spurs travel to Anfield to face Liverpool, who they have not beaten in their last four attempts in the Premier League.

Both the Gunners and Liverpool are direct rivals to Spurs to qualify for next season’s Champions League and their recent record against both is poor. Arsenal are unbeaten in three league games against Spurs, even though they have won only one of their previous six at White Hart Lane.

Vertonghen continued: “I don’t want to say they will be decisive but these games are very important for us. A home game against Arsenal is always something special and against Liverpool, we haven’t done too well in the last couple of years.

“But we have to go there to try to win. We won more big games than we did in the last two years but we lost a couple home games stupidly, so we need to win points against Arsenal and Liverpool to achieve fourth places. That’s very important.”

The mini-revival of Vertonghen’s Belgium team-mate Mousa Dembele has also been a bonus. Signed for £15million in the summer of 2012, Dembele’s Spurs career seemed to be approaching the end. He was rarely first choice for Pochettino and when he did play, he struggled to make the same impact as he did in his early months at Tottenham.

But the former Fulham man was deployed in a new role just behind Kane against Sheffield United and West Brom, and responded with two encouraging performances.

Vertonghen added: “He needed two performances like those. He can play in many different positions and he is just one of those players you want in your team.”