Rodrigo Bentancur was one of Tottenham's two January transfer window signings, both coming from Juventus, with the club holding the option to make Dejan Kulusevski's move permanent as well. The Uruguayan has broken straight into the regular XI and already made an impact.
Last month, Antonio Conte gave praise to both the new arrivals. "To see Rodrigo Bentancur and Deki Kulusevski go into the team so quickly in this idea of football is great for us," he admitted in his post match press conference after the victory at the Amex Stadium.
"I said to you after these two signings now we are more complete, especially in midfield because we lost Skipp for two/three months in this moment. We needed to have a player like Rodrigo."
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Earlier this month, there was more praise for the 24-year-old. "We are happy about his performance and for sure for him it was easy to come into a team with a specific system, with a clear idea. He’s playing very well."
In his 11 Premier League appearances for Tottenham so far, Bentancur has most often played alongside Pierre Emile Hojbjerg and has registered one assist. The midfielder has also produced six shots, 26 accurate long balls and 60 recoveries, showing his impact at both ends of the pitch.
In an interview with The Evening Standard, the Uruguayan international was full of praise for his new boss, after speaking about the work he has put in since his move. "No sooner had I arrived I just thought that I need to make an impact. I enlisted the help of Daniel, my fitness coach, who I managed to bring over here as well," the midfielder admitted.
"By spending your spare time doing extra work and fitness work, it’s a positive. Ever since I have arrived I have seen that mentality that Antonio has. That’s something that I really appreciate and I really like as well.
"He is the sort of coach who is very intense with everything and he wants his players to always give the maximum with everything, 100% all the time." The 24-year-old spoke about how quick and intense the English game is, which is why working on his fitness has really helped and he also compared it to the Italian football he was used to.
"Italian football is almost like the school for defending. In terms of positional sense and tactical awareness that really came on during my time in Italy, because that’s what they do extremely well and what you learn," he explained.
The Uruguayan made the move to the capital from Juventus and came with his teammate Kulusevski. Both have made an immediate impact on the Tottenham side, with the Swede already producing three goals and six assists in 12 Premier League features.
"It does help coming with a team-mate. I knew that he [Kulusevski] was a great player, but I think he is displaying even more qualities and abilities since he arrived at Tottenham. He’s playing even better than at Juve," Bentancur admits.
"Our front-three are fantastic players. So our job is really just to get the ball back and give it to them, because it is a 99% chance they are going to score a goal!"
Kulusevski has slotted in perfectly, alongside Harry Kane and Son Heung-min and the trio are helping score and create goals for the team almost every game. Conte always put an emphasis on improvement and this is something Bentancur has identified with his own game too.
"Everything begins with a dream. I can’t say it hasn’t been anything but tough for a kid to come from such a small space, 10,000 population," the midfielder admitted.
"You would never imagine this. But I am lucky enough to have been successful and I think the important thing is that you have to never give up. It’s not about resting on your laurels, it’s all about working hard to maintain that level."
The Spurs boss will hope that Bentancur can not only continue making an impact in the Tottenham squad, but also continuing improving as a player. A strong performance will be needed from the Uruguayan and all of Conte's side when they travel to Brentford on Saturday, following the disappointing defeat to Brighton last week.
