The reign of Ange Postecoglou at Tottenham Hotspur has been nothing short of a whirlwind ride to date, albeit that journey has included largely positives so far.
The Aussie has won the Manager of the Month award on three occasions already but a wealth of injuries have hit the squad hard of late.
Indeed, prior to their win over Nottingham Forest last Friday, the Lilywhites had only won one of their last five Premier League fixtures.
A large part of that has been down to an injury sustained by exciting summer signing James Maddison. The Englishman has been involved in seven goals in 11 outings prior to his injury but a lack of creativity has hurt Postecoglou's side since.
As such, the January transfer window will be welcomed warmly by those of a Spurs persuasion.
Tottenham's plans for January – attacking shortlist
This could be a rather exciting window for the north Londoners who are said to be targeting some new forward options.
Ivan Toney of Brentford has been linked, as has Lois Openda at RB Leipzig. However, an attacking midfielder is also on their radar.
Perhaps somewhat surprisingly, reports in Spain over the weekend linked Tottenham with a swoop for Felipe Anderson.
The Brazilian's contract with Italian side Lazio expires next summer and as such it's stated that Spurs could take advantage of uncertainty surrounding his future.
Fellow Serie A sides Juventus and Milan are also thought to be hovering around with the view to a potential move.
How Felipe Anderson last performed in England
Anderson had an incredibly mixed spell during his first stint in the Premier League when he was contracted to West Ham United.
Supporters may well remember the 2018/19 campaign where the now 30-year-old was in imperious form in the final third, scoring ten times and registering five assists across 40 matches in all competitions.
Sadly that was about as good as it got for the 5 foot 9 maestro in English football who ended the following term with just a solitary goal to his name.
A move to Italy was forthcoming where for the most part he has been electric. Only last season, the "unplayable" asset – as dubbed by Juve correspondent Adam Digby several years ago – has proved exactly that at times. Indeed, Anderson scored 12 times and posted nine assists. Impressive work.
How does Felipe Anderson compare to Dele Alli?
Such numbers in the final third have unsurprisingly seen him compared to Dele Alli. The Englishman's career has sadly never lived up to the dizzy heights we were expecting when he won the PFA Young Player of the Year back in 2017.
Alli found life difficult, notably under Jose Mourinho, and a bid to get his career back on track at Everton and Besiktas hasn't worked.
A number of personal issues and mental health problems have unfortunately plagued the last few years of life but before that, the attacking midfielder was a marvel and one who was 'similar' to Anderson, as per FBref.
That was primarily during the aforementioned 2018/19 campaign, where the Brazilian was at his best on English shores.
#1 Andros Townsend
#2 Dele Alli
#3 Bernardo Silva
#4 Nathan Redmond
#5 Bernard
#6 Kevin De Bruyne
But how do the raw numbers compare? Well, during that season Alli was in relatively consistent form, scoring seven goals and supplying eight assists in all competitions.
Both capable of playing as attacking midfielders but also drifting into wide areas, their style of play was remarkably alike in that term.
Goals & assists
0.38
0.39
Progressive passes
5.65
5.47
Shots
1.72
1.92
Passes into final third
3.28
3.30
Pass completion rate
73%
79%
Shot-creating actions
4.11
3.15
Goal-creating actions
0.44
0.25
Touches
68.6
65
Carries
41.3
42.2
Passes received
48
46.7
As can be seen from the table, their work in carrying the ball and creating was incredibly similar. There isn't a great deal between the two when it comes to their progressive nature, even if Anderson was actually more prolific that campaign.
However, they boast boasted that instinct to glide past a player and create something magical in the final third. Of course, Spurs would be signing an individual now several years older but truth be told, he seems to be a more intelligent and better player since moving to Lazio.
Perhaps at the second time of asking, Anderson could become a true force in the Premier League, replicating Dele's impact on Tottenham along the way.
