4. Eric Dier
No Tottenham player has had a stranger season than Eric Dier. He entered the campaign as the club’s first-choice defensive midfielder and instead, has played more often as a centre back.
Now that Toby Alderweireld has regained his fitness, expect to see Dier head back to the double-pivot. The only trouble is that Victor Wanyama and Mousa Dembele have seized the two starting positions in Pochettino’s starting XI.
In a great twist of irony, England’s first choice defensive midfielder may not be a regular starter for his English club. That’s partly an indictment of Dier, but is also a statement on the embarrassment of riches that Pochettino has in his defensive midfield.
It’s quite possible that Dier is going to need Europa League action to show Pochettino he can be trusted to compete with the likes of Dembele and Wanyama. He could certainly use solid outings in Europe to make the case he should displace one of them in the starting lineup.