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What Will Happen to Spurs’ Mason and Bentaleb Double Pivot?

By Alexander Balano

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Spurs’ midfield pairing of Alli/Dier is better than Mason/Bentaleb.

So far this season, Dele Alli and Eric Dier have only played together as Mauricio Pochettino’s new double pivot in five games in all competitions but have assured their Argentine coach that they are a better tandem than last season’s pairing of Nabil Bentaleb and Ryan Mason. However with that said, both Bentaleb and Mason are closing in on a return from their injuries just in time for a home game between Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool on October 17.

Due to Eric Dier getting suspended for yellow card accumulation there might be a chance that Nabil Bentaleb would get the start at defensive midfield and make his return to action since last appearing versus Everton on August 29. It’s also possible for Ryan Mason to resume his central midfield role once more if Mauricio Pochettino moves Dele Alli higher up the pitch to become an attacking midfielder again just like he did against Sunderland. Making these changes will shift Christian Eriksen to be Spurs’ starting left midfielder which he would normally play once Heung-Min Son returns to the starting eleven.

RELATED: Spurs’ Mason and Bentaleb Could be Fit for Liverpool

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Because Eric Dier is set to miss the upcoming Liverpool game due to suspension and a possible move for Alli to play as Spurs’ central attacking midfielder again, this might be the only chance that Nabil Bentaleb and Ryan Mason returns to the starting lineup in the Premier League. Bentaleb and Mason’s return is not only good news for Spurs, but this will give last season’s double pivot at least one more chance to play together in the Premier League to see who is in fact the better midfield pair before ceding their positions back to Dele Ali and Eric Dier.

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This doesn’t mean that Bentaleb and Mason will no longer be a part of the team, they just won’t be starting many games like they used to do last term.

Instead, it’s more likely that both Nabil Bentaleb and Ryan Mason will add necessary depth at both midfield positions and make more starts in the Europa League as well as the FA Cup.

By keeping two rotational players along with the return of Mousa Dembélé plus Tom Carroll and Harry Winks, Spurs will have a total of seven players who could play in Mauricio Pochettino’s double pivot in his 4-2-3-1 formation. Unfortunately though, Tottenham still only has two defensive midfielders (Bentaleb and Dier) with everyone else (Alli, Carroll, Dembélé, Mason and Winks) all central midfielders.

There’s a chance that Spurs will look for at least one more defensive midfielder to bring their total up to three who could play the position, but until the January transfer window opens, Mauricio Pochettino will have to rely on alternating between Eric Dier and Nabil Bentaleb plenty of times. Unless the Argentine coach decides to risk Dier’s health even more after having him start every single game up to this point in the season due to a lack of depth.

With Spurs’ new midfield pairing of Dele Alli and Eric Dier playing much better defensively and offensively than Nabil Bentaleb and Ryan Mason did last year, who had their fair share of struggles from time to time. It’s unlikely that Mauricio Pochettino will decide to change his new double pivot. But if Mason has shown improvements in his game this season, it should only be a matter of time before Bentaleb recovers his form. If that happens, these four players will compete to get starting opportunities and help improve Spurs as the season wears on.

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