Dembele discusses Spurs future and position

Mousa Dembele has admitted he finds it “quite hard to hold down a place” at Tottenham, with whom he is seeking talks over his future.

Dembele has endured a mixed spell at White Hart Lane with regards to first-team opportunities, making 44 and 40 appearances in all competitions in the 2012/13 and 2013/14 seasons respectively before making only 34 last campaign, with just 21 games and 10 starts coming in the Premier League.

The Belgian has enjoyed more game time this season however, and after making four consecutive Premier League starts at the beginning of the season, he shone in a more reserved and less accustomed role against Liverpool in the 0-0 draw on Saturday.

This has offered the 28-year-old renewed hope of a long-term future at White Hart Lane, and the midfielder feels his versatility can be an asset for Mauricio Pochettino’s side.

“Against Liverpool, there was a lot of space for me because they try to attack,” Dembele told the Daily Mail. “But against teams that sit back, I could be best from the right as I can make a difference.

“My best position depends on our tactics and the opposition.

“Last season, there were also a lot of players in each position and you have to have this if you want to compete with the top teams.

“It is quite hard to hold down a place.

“It is something that we need to discuss but I will try to impress the manager wherever he plays me. It is something between me and the gaffer that we need to sort out.”

Dembele admits that he struggled to acclimatise to life under the demanding Pochettino, but that the seventh-placed club have now become “more men” this season.

“The first season was about adaptation to understand what the manager wants,” Dembele added.

“There were a few changes made to the team as well. Now we are a bit more ‘men’ than we were last year.You can see how we press and we are more aggressive. Now we understand the manager’s style and the way he wants to play.

“We didn’t play that badly last season but, of course, we want to win things, so we need to grow. You can see the way we play is positive.”