Why Mateus Fernandes has already been overwhelming Tottenham success despite bad start

Mateus Fernandes has not enjoyed the best of starts to life with Tottenham Hotspur.

The Portuguese midfielder was always going to have a target on his back after the money it cost to sign him.

Spurs paid West Ham £85million for Fernandes, despite their relegation to the Championship.

Roberto De Zerbi has been reluctant to use him every week, still.

That's despite Tottenham struggling yet again in the Premier League, somehow sitting bottom ahead of the return.

With trips to Manchester United and Chelsea sandwiched by Coventry at home, points are needed soon.

Could Mateus Fernandes play bigger role?

Despite his struggles and relative experience, it's hard to remember that the midfielder is still only 21.

With Spurs his third club in England and his total transfer cost passing £100m easily, pressure is high to deliver.

Right now, that's not happening.

Despite that, Transfermarkt state that his value has already risen by £16.9m while at Tottenham.

Their fair value of Fernandes in the market is £59.2m, but he would obviously go for much more than that, now.

But, what do the stats say and where does he need to improve?

Mateus Fernandes is nowhere near his full potential

With five Premier League appearances and three starts, he's only averaging 51 minutes per game right now.

Rodrigo Bentancur and Conor Gallagher are being preferred alongside Sandro Tonali, despite that clearly not working for De Zerbi.

Fernandes is that battler in the middle of the park who disrupts play, but can also create going forward.

With two big chances created already, that will improve should he increase his average of 43.2 touches per game.

Spurs are having a lot of the ball, so his defensive stats are lower, only winning 43 per cent of his total duels.

Fernandes needs to be confident on the ball when he has it, with his 50 per cent dribble success rate nowhere near good enough for a possession dominant team.

Keeping that tenacity but improve his quality on the ball will catch De Zerbi's eye, with a younger profile needed around some of the older rubbish.

With his fair market value rising, though, it will only continue going that way when his performances naturally improve, too.