Reece James' display on Sunday was arguably his most accomplished in a Chelsea shirt, but despite only being 22, that list is becoming pretty lengthy.
The England international started the game on the right of a back-three by Thomas Tuchel, a role he played in the remaining weeks of last season.
Then, after Spurs controversially equalised through Pierre-Emile Højbjerg, Tuchel replaced Jorginho with Cesar Azpilicueta and pushed James into his more favoured wing-back spot.
That switch quickly got Chelsea back onto the front foot, delivering a perfect cross that Kai Havertz bafflingly hit wide. James then calmly showed how it was done inside the box, putting the ball past Hugo Lloris to restore Chelsea's lead.
READ MORE: Why Mateo Kovacic furiously shouted at Antonio Conte as Thomas Tuchel screams at N'Golo Kante
Given his standout performance, he deserved better than seeing Harry Kane's 95th-minute header cruelly squirm into the goal after brushing his knee.
"I don't have a clue [how it ended 2-2]," James told Chelsea TV. "It's very frustrating to walk away with one point when you feel like you should win. We feel like two goals should have definitely been disallowed. That's down to the referees and fourth officials."
His continuing productivity was illustrated by OptaJoe pointing out that he has been directly involved in 15 goals in 28 appearances for Chelsea in the Premier League since the start of last season (6 goals, 9 assists), the most of any defender.
This switch by Tuchel only came to prove why one of his most creative outlets should remain a wingback.
James' great versatility arguably hurts him, given he so comfortably slots into a back-three and has been able to nullify some of Europe's most devastating attackers.
On Sunday, he effectively man-marked Son-Heung Min out of the game. At the Bernabeu, in April, he did similar to Vinicius Jnr, a talent who would go on to score Real Madrid's winning goal in the Champions League final.
This all leads to why Chelsea needs another defender before the end of the transfer window and why the pursuit of Wesley Fofana from Leicester continues to intensify.
As much as Tuchel's choice to shift James back into defence was a tactic that had worked before, it also reflected a lack of trust in Azpilicueta. Which then meant Ruben Loftus-Cheek was deployed as the wingback.
Tuchel needs speed and mobility to maintain the highly demanding counter-pressing system he desires. In particular, for James, allowing him to run riot in the final third means that you need good defensive cover behind him.
The failed pursuit of Jules Kounde made sense due to the French defender's ability in possession but also acceleration to eat up the ground. Fofana would likely come into that right-sided role alongside Thiago Silva and Kalidou Koulibaly.
Offering Tuchel the comfort to leave those man-marking jobs to a defender, meaning that you do not have to sacrifice any creativity in a final third that has lacked in under the German.
There is little doubt James is a wonderful talent. One who has already shown a freakish ability to perform to high standards in multiple challenging roles. However, with that second-half switch, you saw in two moments how electric a threat he becomes when the handbrake is off.
James is like a Ferrari. Although you could drive that Ferrari around London and get some nice looks and cool Insta pics around famous landmarks, you are never truly going to feel the beauty of that machine until it is out on the open road.
READ NEXT :
Frenkie De Jong Chelsea transfer dream must answer defining Thomas Tuchel question
Todd Boehly overdue £40m success breaks fundamental Chelsea transfer rule to set new trend
Timo Werner Chelsea fate exposes wider transfer mistake that Todd Boehly cannot repeat
Callum Hudson-Odoi Dortmund talks could finally end Chelsea's £150m transfer dead-end
- Full Chelsea Premier League fixture list for 2022/23
