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Giovani Lo Celso has been announced as a new signing for Tottenham Hotspur.

After signing Tanguy Ndombele and Jack Clarke earlier in the window, following back-to-back transfer windows without a signing, the club now appear well covered ahead of the new season.

There could still be some outgoings, though.

Christian Eriksen being the main one, with Real Madrid supposedly interested in signing the Dane.

Eriksen, who has admitted it might be time for a "new challenge", can leave Tottenham on a free transfer this time next year, as he enters the final year of his contract, and Spurs do not want to lose the talented playmaker for nothing.

But what does Pochettino do if Eriksen does leave? How would Spurs cope, and how would Mauricio Pochettino change his tactics without the Dane?

The Tottenham Hotspur manager maximised his squad in a season that saw them reach the Champions League final and fourth in the Premier League by solving various problems with subtle tactical tweaks.

He turned to using a midfield diamond on occasion to mask the lack of legitimate options at his disposal in central midfield, even before Mousa Dembele left the club in January.

Under Pochettino's guidance, Moussa Sissoko has come good to make the most of his ability to harass opponents and carry the ball forward.

When Harry Kane was ruled out through injury, Fernando Llorente was deployed as an old fashioned targetman with midfield runners to pounce on the knock downs.

His proactive, constructive approach to management led Spurs as close as they have come to lift a major title during his reign, and their first-ever appearance in a Champions League final.

But there has been one player throughout his time in charge that has come to be regarded as one cog that could never be replaced.

Christian Eriksen has been Pochettino's No.10 and moved into a deeper role to help patch up a midfield so often lacking the personnel needed to continue to function, on paper.

In some ways, he has epitomised the tactical intelligence and flexibility of his team with the way he moves between the lines, positions himself to cover spaces and brings the best out of in others.

The Argentinian has already proven, time and time again, that he can reshuffle his pack to come out the other side with as strong a hand as ever, and he is well-placed to do the same again.

Ndombele was introduced, and now Lo Celso has been announced, and while neither player is a like-for-like replacement for Eriksen, that is not how Pochettino has tended to work.

He is a manager who seeks to find another way and evolve his team rather than dwelling over a problem that cannot be solved with the same old answers.

What could the two arrivals do for a Tottenham team in a post-Eriksen future?

What Tanguy Ndombele brings to Tottenham

Ndombele is a very modern, all-rounder of a midfielder who contributes effectively to every phase of play, despite regularly playing in a pairing.

The Frenchman ticks all the boxes as a footballer and an athlete.

(Image: VI Images via Getty Images)

He has a real eye for a pass and is very difficult to dispossess when he has the ball - a quality that saw Mousa Dembele excel for Spurs under Pochettino, even if he lacked end product in the final third.

Ndombele does not. He can find runners and pick a pass, and when things get physical he is well equipped to deal with whatever the midfield battle can throw at him.

On top of all that, he is a worker - and an excellent work rate is a non-negotiable demand to thrive in a Pochettino team.

His ability to cope when pressed largely stems from his dribbling proficiency. In all competitions last season, he averaged 5.05 dribble attempts per 90 minutes.

(Image: Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)

That figure is unique for a central midfielder and for perspective, Eric Dier averages 0.47, Victor Wanyama 1.67, Harry Winks 2.01, and Christian Eriksen 2.05.

Despite attempting more dribbles per 90, Ndombele's success rate was also higher than any Spurs midfielder, at over 80%.

The Frenchman isn't particularly inclined to score or directly assist a goal, but he certainly plays a part in everything leading up to that.

He makes more forward passes per 90 than any other Tottenham midfielder, as well as making more passes to the final third.

His measurable output is pictured in the midfield radar below in comparison to Eriksen's, with the scales based on the gold standard in Europe per 90 minutes for each area.

(Image: @DistanceCovered)

Ultimately, Ndombele is a very complete player with a skill set that is unusual to say the least, but a very different prospect to Eriksen.

At only 22 years of age, he has plenty of potential to realise playing for Pochettino too, and Spurs fans know exactly what their manager can do for a talented youngster with the right qualities.

What Giovani Lo Celso brings to Tottenham

Lo Celso is an even trickier player to define.

He's certainly in the mould of the versatile types of players that Pochettino has put to good use so far for Spurs.

The Argentinian appears to be more influential in advanced areas, having been deployed in a largely offensive midfield role at Real Betis, as shown by his 2018/19 heatmap below.

(Image: Wyscout)

However, he's also been used as a centre-forward of sorts, and in central midfield, with the Spanish side utilising a variety of formations.

Manager Quique Setien was highly praised for his tactical approach last season in La Liga, with 3-5-2 and 3-4-2-1 shapes being the most prominent formations used by Betis.

He often played Lo Celso either just behind a striker in the former configuration or as one of the attacking midfielders in the latter.

As a result of his varied roles, a statistical reading of his output will be rather unreliable.

He's obviously going to be less creative when deployed in a deeper role, for example.

Nevertheless, his midfield output for Betis this season is pictured below in comparison to Eriksen.

(Image: @DistanceCovered)

The 23 year-old has clear ability with regards to ball progression, similar to Ndombele. The difference is Lo Celso's inclination to influence scoring, as his xG figure per 90 suggests he's very involved in finishing chances at the business end of the pitch.

This is backed up by his actual output, as he's notched 16 goals for Betis this season in all club competitions.

One notable aspect of the radar, though, is that despite being similar to Eriksen in some areas, the two have differing levels of creation.

(Image: Aitor Alcalde Colomer/Getty Images)

Through passes and Expected Assists (xA) capture Eriksen's influence well, as well as highlighting the gap to Lo Celso - although that may be due to differing roles.

How Mauricio Pochettino can build a better team without Christian Eriksen

Ultimately, Spurs are likely to try and replace Eriksen's influence on the team, rather than Eriksen himself, with the combined qualities of two players and a tweak to the system rather than a like-for-like substitution.

By signing Ndombele and Lo Celso, Pochettino has gained two superb progressors of the ball, both of whom have a dribbling trait that is relatively rare for their positions.

It is the sort of talent that made Mousa Dembele so important to Spurs during the early years of their manager's reign over White Hart Lane.

The Argentinian initially only ever set out his team to play in a 4-2-3-1 shape but it is not longer reasonable to expect Tottenham Hotspur to stick with one tactical formation.

Still, a return to 4-2-3-1 may be the most obvious way to get the best out of the players Pochettino has available while integrating new signings and finding Eriksen's replacement in the aggregate.

Ndombele is able to operate as part of the deeper midfield pairing, with the trio ahead consisting of Son Heung-Min, Dele Alli and Lo Celso, and Harry Kane as the striker, as shown below.

(Image: Wyscout)

Lo Celso is left-footed, so he should be comfortable playing on the right, with view to then cutting inside, similar to Son on the opposite flank.

After a season that saw Alli struggle at times, this lineup would move the England international back behind Kane in the hole - a position from which he has proven he can be a menace to even the best defences.

Overall, Pochettino has shown himself to be the great adapter, regardless of circumstances, at Spurs.

While 4-2-3-1 may appear to the most suitable plan of action in theory, Ndombele and Lo Celso are so strangely complete in what they offer that Tottenham's ability to become shape-shifters would only increase.

Pochettino may lose his playmaker this season but his systems may become more well-rounded as a consequence.