Victor Wanyama Will Help Sustain Tottenham’s Midfield Dynamics in the Long Term

Within minutes of his Tottenham Hotspur debut, Victor Wanyama was demonstrating textbook defensive-midfield work. He tracked Everton’s Ross Barkley into the left-back area, put him under pressure and then tackled him before passing to Danny Rose, who safely scarpered forward.

Wanyama’s next contribution showed the fine margins within which he and positional peers have to operate in their protective duties. Kevin Mirallas ran in behind his unaware central-midfield partner Eric Dier, and the Kenyan reacted well to get across. His sliding challenge did not win the ball, but nor did it warrant the Belgian’s theatrical reaction and subsequent free-kick.

More on goal: @VictorWanyama penalised for a foul on Mirallas who was breaking and Barkley’s free-kick from the left goes straight in.

— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) August 13, 2016

Barkley scored from the subsequent set piece, handing Everton a 1-0 lead. Within 10 minutes, Tottenham had seen two sides of Wanyama, a simplified showcase of how he may come to affect the team’s midfield dynamics.

Erik Lamela’s second-half equaliser ensured his team-mate’s first Premier League appearance for Tottenham would not be remembered for his costly foul. Overall it was an adequate performance from which Wanyama can look to build on.

It is likely he is going to get further opportunities to do so, too, as Mousa Dembele still has three matches remaining of the suspension he received for an altercation with Diego Costa in last May’s 2-2 draw with Chelsea.

Speaking ahead of the Everton game, Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettino admitted “it’s true that Mousa was important for us last season and is a big loss for us for the first few games, but we need to deal with that.”

The north Londoners missed Dembele’s influence in central midfield when he was unavailable as 2015-16 progressed. Pochettino specifically mentioned Dele Alli’s absence as costly in their rough final month, too.

The younger player had been situated in a deeper role earlier in the campaign and returned there to cover for Dembele. His active, all-action shaping of proceedings may have ensured Spurs did not miss the Belgian’s contributions so much—for instance in December’s 2-1 loss to Newcastle United or January’s 1-1 draw with Everton. Alli was still typically lively in these games, but his focus was predominantly in the final third rather than igniting things in the midfield engine room.

Wanyama was signed with such deputising duty in mind, a vital addition to the squad’s ranks as they prepare for the demands of playing in four competitions. Prior to playing Everton, Pochettino was confident of the new man’s ability to work here and will still be now after the game.

“I think Victor is a player who knows us and how we work and the philosophy and was easy for him to adapt his quality, his skill in the team,” the Argentinian said of a player he had bought for Southampton three years earlier. “From day one of pre-season he feels very comfortable and settled in the team.”

Described by Pochettino as “strong” and having “good quality with the ball,” Wanyama showed both attributes at Everton. He did indeed look comfortable …

continue reading in source www.bleacherreport.com