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The fans are desperate for Giovani Lo Celso to be a success at Tottenham Hotspur but the midfielder has plenty of work to do to break into Jose Mourinho's team.

The 23-year-old Argentina international had finally broken into Mauricio Pochettino's starting line-up following a hip injury picked up on international duty and impressed with his two first starts, including a goal on his full debut in the Champions League at Red Star Belgrade.

Then Mourinho arrived and Lo Celso plummeted down the pecking order.

The Argentine has played just seven minutes in the Premier League in Mourinho's first five matches. He did not appear in the Champions League win against Olympiacos but did start in the dead rubber match against Bayern, playing 65 minutes before being replaced.

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Lo Celso's season-long loan at Tottenham from Real Betis can be made permanent for £27.2m in January or for £34m at the end of the season. Should Spurs qualify for next season's Champions League then they are obligated to make the midfielder's deal permanent for the higher price.

Betis president Angel Haro told a shareholder's meeting this week that there has been no further news "regarding the purchase option", but said: "[Tottenham] will exercise it because if they don't they will be [charged more] in June.

"They may also have to exercise the mandatory [clause]. We understand that they will exercise it, but if not [we will be] delighted with the player [returning]."

While Lo Celso finds himself below wantaway Christian Eriksen in the pecking order on the bench, the Argentine will get chances in the weeks ahead as the festive fixtures come thick and fast and injuries will also mount up.

At the moment, Lo Celso has two key positions in the team he needs to target.

While Eric Dier, Dele Alli and Son Heung-min have nailed down their roles in Mourinho's team, Lucas Moura is yet to make that third attacking midfield role his own despite some big goals while the role next to Dier is still up for grabs for a midfield passer.

Lo Celso can play in both positions and when he next gets a chance he has to convince Mourinho that he fits his system.

His performance in Munich was disappointing. While he was involved in Ryan Sessegnon's goal, he didn't do enough to take a grip of the game himself and stand out.

While he was not alone in that, it was noticeable that Tottenham looked more dangerous in attack when Son and Skipp replaced Lucas and the Argentine.

The Lo Celso in Pochettino's final two matches was constantly demanding the ball and much of Tottenham's play was going through him, especially the good aspects.

(Image: TF-Images/Getty Images)

He has all the qualities to impress Mourinho. He is aggressive on and off the ball, looks to put his foot in, works hard, creates for others and can score a goal.

Mourinho's aim is to take Spurs back into the top four. They could be there on Sunday afternoon if they beat Chelsea and if they achieve his objective at the end of the campaign then Lo Celso will be his player next season, a £50m signing in all to boot.

The new Tottenham head coach told football.london this month that he does see the Argentine as a player for the future, but it's a case of him adapting to the Premier League.

"Giovani is in Europe for a few years, but France with PSG and then Spain, it's a completely different football world than it is in England," he said.

"So many experienced players arrive in England the click for them is not automatic. So a young guy like Giovani also needs his time to adapt to the Premier League.

"You could see, even with Mauricio, an Argentinean man like him, easy communication, surrounded by some boys who speak French, he speaks English, so even in those surroundings of support it's not like he arrives here and explodes immediately. But we know the good player he is, give him time to develop and we think he is going to be a good player for us."

Ahead of the match against Wolves, Mourinho added that "we have a few players one step ahead because of performance" but that Lo Celso will start matches and get his chance to impress.

"Our squad is not a big squad in numbers, and he will start for sure because it's impossible to play all the time with the same players," he said.

Those nailed on starters will also pick up injuries, Dier and Alli have plenty of history in that aspect in the past 12 months.

Lo Celso can have a big role going forward for Tottenham and the change in manager need not impact that for too long, but only if the Argentine takes his chances when they come.