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Football London
Football London
Sport
Rob Guest

How Jose Mourinho can fit Steven Bergwijn, Son Heung-min and Lucas Moura into his Tottenham XI

Jose Mourinho has quite a headache on his hands when it comes to his attacking players.

The Tottenham boss is blessed with a number of brilliant options out wide but the issue is giving them all sufficient time on the pitch.

Lucas Moura and Son Heung-min got the nod in a 4-3-3 formation on Wednesday evening in the 3-1 win over Newcastle United, with Steven Bergwijn and Erik Lamela having to make do with a place on the substitutes' bench.

The latter duo did come on in the second half and they had a big say on the final result as they teed up goals for Harry Kane.

Fans have been desperate to see more of Bergwijn after such an impressive start to his Tottenham career but he has had to settle for a place on the bench in three of their last four games.

He proved at Newcastle exactly why he was brought to the club and the issue for Mourinho is trying to fit him in given the options available to him.

The head coach is a huge fan of Lucas and has continued to start him week in, week out despite his mixed form, with Son Heung-min one of the first names on the teamsheet due to his ability to find the net regularly.

But is there a way Bergwijn, Lucas and Son can start in the same XI for Mourinho? football.london takes a look.

4-2-3-1

Spurs have already lined up with the trio in this formation during the 3-1 defeat at Sheffield United.

Amid question marks over who exactly would start in the middle of the three behind Kane, it was Bergwijn who got the nod at Bramall Lane.

Perhaps not his strongest position as he usually operates on the flanks, the Dutchman has played in the role a number of times in the past for PSV and made an impact in terms of goals and assists.

Bergwijn only played 56 minutes in South Yorkshire but he did cause the hosts a few issues with his powerful runs and mazy dribbles.

The only issue with playing the 22-year-old centrally is that it raises questions over Dele Alli's place in the team once he is back to fitness.

However, if Mourinho wants to start the trio in a 4-2-3-1 then Bergwijn will have to play centrally with Lucas to the right of him and Son to his left.

4-4-2

Another option for Mourinho is to play the classic 4-4-2 that he utilised in last Sunday's 2-1 win over Arsenal.

Moussa Sissoko operated out on the right instead of his usual berth in the middle, with Lucas pushed across to the left from his natural position.

Son was instead played through the middle and it certainly benefited Kane as sometimes he cuts an isolated figure upfront when he has nobody in and around him.

While Bergwijn could thrive by playing on the left wing, as he often did at PSV, what would perhaps stifle him is if Mourinho doesn't give him the licence to push on so the team keep their shape and make it difficult for opponents.

That could be a factor against teams challenging at the top of the league, whereas he may have more freedom on the wing against a team lower down the rankings.

Son is capable of playing in a front two as he has done numerous times before and that would only benefit Kane as a result.

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