Antonio Conte just may have unearthed his new secret weapon at Tottenham Hotspur.
To put it simply, the new signing on the Hotspur block Dejan Kulusevski is unlike any other forward the Italian serial winner currently has on his roster. A substitute appearance as a second striker. A tireless performance primarily spent tracking back. A switch to right wing-back.
Then a more conventional and traditional shift in familiar territory as a wide forward, its safe to say Kulusevski’s versatility could be Spurs’ most useful tool to shape their season under the former Chelsea and Inter Milan boss.
It’s been an eventful week for talented Swede, taking in four games that have highlighted not just his versatility, but his unique abilities that arguably no other Spurs attacker possesses, bar Harry Kane of course.
Against Wolverhampton Wanderers, Kulusevski’s role as a No 10 was to find space between the lines and create opportunities. He did that well despite the disappointing defeat, almost setting up a goal for Son Heung-min and almost getting on the scoresheet himself.
Against Manchester City, we just why Fabio Paratici personally pushed to sign the Swedish international from Italian giants Juventus. A goal and an assist in amongst an stunning all-round performance, which will have come as no surprise to those who enjoyed Kulusevski in Italy, where he regularly topped the distance-covered charts in Serie A.
While Harry Kane and Son Hueng-Min may have taken all the plaudits for their perfectly synced attacking display, it was the 21-year-old Swede quietly going about his business in devastating fashion. Not just providing an added foil to Spurs’ most destructive attacking pair but also showed why he’s a excellent all-round footballer, sacrificing his own attacking needs to help the team keep their defensive shape.
Having spent much of that Manchester City game defending, he then switched to a right wing-back role for the final 25 minutes in the defeat to Burnley and very nearly scored again, hitting the post with a trademark left-footed curling effort.
On Saturday though, against a faltering and now manager-less Leeds United team, Kulusevski lining up on the the right-wing of Conte’s 3-4-3 setup, provided the ideal ammunition for Spurs to destroy the Whites and doom Marcelo Bielsa to a heartbreaking sacking and departure from Elland Road. He scored again, almost scored another, and was involved all throughout as Spurs revived their slim push for the European places with a 4-0 thrashing.
The Swede’s versatility and tactical willingness will be crucial in the coming weeks and months for Tottenham. Conte’s squad looks relatively slim after the club saw more players depart than arrive in January, so possessing a player who can operate in a variety of positions and be effective in such different game situations will be so vital to Spurs picking up much needed points in their run for European participation.
Kulusevski’s versatility was a feature of his time at Juventus as well, lining up at times as a right-winger, right-midfielder in a more conservative formation, a left-midfielder, a striker, and as a no.10. Though, its not just his willingness and drive to perform such roles, but his incredible skill-set and flexibility. He’s an effective ball-carrier, a willing runner, a mazy dribbler but also player capable of locating pockets in between opposition lines and wreaking havoc with his fine balance, close-control, technique. He’s also capable of picking out telling passes through his wonderful vision and unique weight of pass.
Kulusevski has also added a clinical edge to his game since joining Spurs — he has scored as many goals in his last three games as he managed in his final 44 Serie A matches for Juventus. This has been an area of his game Kulusevski has wanted to improve for some time. “I need to improve in shooting more often and also in scoring more,” he told Sky Italia upon joining Juventus two years ago.
The early signs of his Spurs career are particularly encouraging, even though it has been with its expected struggles. Given the form of Lucas Moura in the early parts of the season, and the decisive substitute appearances of Dutch winger Steven Bergwijn, it’s impressive how quickly Kulusevski has moved ahead of them in the pecking order. On top of his hard running, dribbling ability (he completed four of five dribbles against Leeds) and goals, Kulusevski has made a positive impression at Tottenham with his attitude, endeavor and hard work, although that has never been an issue for him, even at Parma and Juventus, even when things proved difficult.
He’s a brave, courageous and driven footballer who will only improve further heading into his Tottenham Hotspur career. Providing he does go onto to enjoy a flawless loan spell at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, then Conte and Paratici will be well inclined to activate the purchase option in his loan deal in North London. Against Leeds United, he was at his stunning best, registering a 100% shot accuracy (two attempts), 91% passing accuracy (34 attempts), four dribbles, nine ground duels won and one big chance created.
Conte described Kulusevski as a “perfect player” for Spurs after the game and then told The Athletic that: “He is showing that he is a fantastic player for the present but also if he continues in this way he can become a really important player. He is strong physically, good technically, he has no fear of the opponent or the tackle.”
He certainly demonstrated these invaluable qualities against Leeds, and on a day when Kane and Son broke the Premier League record for a pair creating goals for one another, Kulusevski reminded us that he will be incredibly crucial to Harry Kane and Son’s individual games as they are for each other.
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