Christian Eriksen is nobody’s idea of a workhorse. Perhaps it is that unhurried style of his, the easy gait, the time he seems to have on the ball. But any Tottenham fan will tell you that Eriksen is one of the hardest, strongest runners in English football: deceptively quick, quietly relentless.

“I’ve always been a player on the move,” he says. “It’s not because I like running. I like getting the ball. If you are smart enough, you don’t need to run.”

In the last few weeks, that hard work has finally been paying off. Urged by manager Mauricio Pochettino to “dominate” games more often, Eriksen has responded with five goals and three assists in his last seven matches.

Ahead of crucial games against Watford and Chelsea, Tottenham are at the door of the top four, and in Eriksen, they possess one of the Premier League’s finest locksmiths.

“I’ve never been one to go past 20 players on the wing,” he explains. “I’m always going to be the guy sneaking the ball through, to build and create something. The one I most admire is [Andres] Iniesta. His style of play has been fantastic for years. Of course, they run less at Barcelona as they always have the ball…”