There’s loads of buzz round 18-year-old Lucas Bergvall, who turned down Barcelona to hitch Tottenham. We check out his sport forward of his first marketing campaign within the Premier League following a formidable show in a pre-season pleasant win over Hearts.
In some ways, that is an unsure time at Tottenham.
There’s stability and continuity in that Ange Postecoglou continues to be round to hold on the constructive work he did final season, whereas a lot of the core of the staff will stay the identical.
Guglielmo Vicario will begin the season opener in objective in opposition to newly promoted Leicester, Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven might be at centre-back, Pedro Porro and Future Udogie will line up at full-back, James Maddison might be in midfield and Son Heung-min will captain the facet.
However there are nonetheless a couple of positions the place issues are much less sure, and loads of huge questions encompass the staff.
Will they exit and strengthen their assault within the remaining weeks of the switch window? Will Yves Bissouma be trusted within the number-six function or will any person else be introduced in? And which of the membership’s proficient children might be trusted within the first staff – and the way a lot?
Together with Archie Grey, Jamie Donley and Mikey Moore, Lucas Bergvall is a kind of younger gamers. The 18-year-old Swede is sort of probably the one followers are most enthusiastic about.
That’s partially due to how his transfer to Spurs happened. Bergvall turned down Barcelona to maneuver to north London. Spurs followers who’ve grown accustomed to seeing potential recruits transfer to larger golf equipment have been delighted that somebody so extremely rated would select them.
The deal was agreed within the winter switch window, and {the teenager}’s insistence that he stay at Djurgården in his dwelling nation for an additional six months was roundly seen as an indicator of simply how mature he was.
Now, although, with {the teenager} having joined formally at first of the month and deep in pre-season coaching together with his new membership, those self same Spurs followers are hoping Bergvall is mature sufficient to play a task with the primary staff this season. An help and a constructive general efficiency in his first look in a Spurs shirt in Wednesday’s 5-1 pleasant win over Hearts solely fuelled the thrill additional.
Bergvall insists his greatest place is as a “box-to-box quantity eight”, however it might show an enormous ask for him to play in central midfield at Premier League stage given he has lower than 2,000 minutes of top-flight soccer – all in Sweden – to his identify.
It could be extra possible that he first performs in a extra superior function if he performs within the Premier League, although he’ll wish to get Europa League sport time in the course of the park.
That’s the place he performed in opposition to Hearts after coming off the bench on the break, and the place he spent most of his time at Djurgården.
Towards Hearts, he took up positions to get on the ball recurrently, with solely centre-backs Emerson Royal (70) and Grey (60) having extra touches of the ball than him (55).
He acquired on the half-turn in positions between the strains and had a big effect on Spurs’ attacking play. No participant made extra passes within the last third than his 22, whereas he progressed the ball into the ultimate third extra occasions than anybody else on the pitch (8). Solely Alfie Devine (4) created extra possibilities than him (3), together with his help for Spurs’ third objective.
The center of the park is definitely the place his future lies, however it might be comprehensible if Postecoglou thought it was too quickly for him to play there at such a excessive stage. He didn’t play out huge in any respect for Djurgården, however it could be one thing his new supervisor is contemplating.
The inch-perfect cross Bergvall put in from the fitting for Dane Scarlett earlier than Ashley Phillips’ objective suggests he might play out huge, whereas his ball-carrying capacity would possibly additional encourage Postecoglou to play him there to start with, not less than partially as a result of he’d have much less defensive accountability on the market.
Bergvall made 12 appearances within the nonetheless ongoing 2024 Allsvenskan season earlier than leaving for Spurs, through which time he ranked fifth among the many 68 midfielders with not less than 500 minutes to their identify for profitable dribbles per 90 (2.0) – sustaining a 58.8% dribbles success price – and eighth for carries of not less than 10m upfield per 90 (4.5).
He additionally introduced finish product after transferring the ball ahead, rating seventh for carries adopted by a shot or probability created per 90 (1.3). His sole help additionally got here following a carry.
He additionally mixed carries with profitable dribbles, rating ninth among the many identical group of Allsvenskan midfielders for the variety of occasions he carried the ball not less than 5m after which beat an opponent with a dribble, doing so 1.8 occasions per 90.
He has a worthwhile knack for breaking strains, and does so in quite a lot of methods. In addition to his capacity to take the ball previous somebody, he appears to be like to obtain passes past the opposition’s midfield line – usually in the fitting half-space – as he did within the beneath occasion in opposition to Hearts earlier than driving forwards and laying on his help for Moore.
With that help, he additionally confirmed his capacity to interrupt strains together with his passing; his intention each time he’s on the ball is to maneuver play in direction of the opposition’s objective.
“I like to seek out options, to take the ball ahead, play [to] my teammates in good positions and take dangers to attain,” he advised The Athletic earlier this summer time. “Possibly typically you lose the ball, however that’s to assist the staff.”
Having one other inventive midfielder alongside Maddison will undoubtedly assist Spurs in assault, however that could be a luxurious Postecoglou can’t afford. In spite of everything, final season their greatest issues have been on the different finish of the pitch. Spurs scored at a price of just about two objectives per sport, but in addition conceded 1.6 per sport. They conceded 10 extra objectives than Fifteenth-placed Everton.
Trying on the particular person high quality in Tottenham’s defence, Postecoglou gained’t really feel a lot must make a significant improve this summer time, however Romero and Van de Ven will want extra safety subsequent season, and the system might have tweaking to make sure that occurs. Throwing a light-weight 18-year-old playmaker whose principal concern is affecting the sport within the last third into central midfield might doubtlessly do extra hurt than good.
Bergvall isn’t afraid to get caught in, however his rating amongst Allsvenskan midfielders this season for regains (thirtieth, with 5.0 per 90), tackles (forty eighth, 1.5 per 90), interceptions (forty eighth, 0.7 per 90) and fouls dedicated (thirty eighth, 1.1 per 90) present this facet of his sport isn’t his principal precedence nor his greatest energy. Djurgården are within the prime half of the league for regains (seventh of 16), tackles (fifth) and fouls (fourth), so it isn’t as if there wasn’t the chance for Bergvall to contribute with out the ball.
Spurs’ new midfielder is more likely to have to remain affected person and watch for alternatives to play as a result of he simply isn’t going to be as integral part of Postecoglou’s staff as he was in Sweden.
However there may be loads of capacity, confidence and potential there for his new membership to work with, and with Tottenham again in Europe, an enormous squad might be wanted.
Bergvall might want to take the probabilities he’s given, and if he does that, we might properly find yourself seeing a good bit of him this season. He’s about as thrilling a prospect as Spurs have had on their books in the previous couple of years.
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