Lucas is the latest Tottenham star to be invigorated by Mauricio Pochettino
Mauricio Pochettino has helped a lot of players at Tottenham reach their full potential. Lucas Moura is the latest to benefit from his tutelage.
Harry Kane scored the opening goal for Tottenham at Manchester United, but it was Lucas Moura who put the match out of reach. His two sumptuous finishes at Old Trafford left United fans in agony and Spurs supporters in ecstasy. The Brazilian winger’s career has come alive under Mauricio Pochettino.
In fairness, no one should be all that surprised. The length of Tottenham players who have thrived under Pochettino is pretty lengthy. For everyone Fernando Llorente sized flop, there are several Kieran Trippier’s and Dele Alli’s in the success column. For the most part, players who have come to Pochettino willing to work have found immense success.
On the other hand, no one could have reasonably predicted the scorching start to the campaign Lucas has enjoyed. His new life at Tottenham began as soon as preseason opened. His hard work during the summer put himself in a much better position in Pochettino’s eyes. That, combined with the departure of Son Heung-Min to the Asian Games paved his way into the starting XI for the first three matches of the Premier League campaign.
To say he’s repaid Pochettino’s faith in him would be a pretty big understatement. The 26-year-old attacker has three games in as many games and leads the club with a Whoscored.com player rating average of 7.87. That’s an excellent start for a player whose finishing ability was often the target of criticism by PSG supporters.
While the goal scoring is great, it’s not the most impressive aspect of Lucas’ play this season. The biggest surprise is how much he’s worked to help Pochettino implement is high press on the ball. His energy at the point of the press this season has been contagious. Lucas has managed to force opposing defenders into poor giveaways on multiple occasions. It’s that quality that will keep him in Pochettino’s plans even when a goal scoring drought arrives.
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It will be very interesting to see just how far Lucas can go now that he’s found his way under Pochettino. A recall to the Brazil squad has to be a big goal for the talented attacker. If he continues to play this well for Tottenham, he could be reuniting with Neymar on the international stage very soon.