Lamela vows to justify his transfer fee at Spurs

The Spurs midfielder was expected to be the man to fill the void left by Gareth Bale when he moved from Roma in a club-record deal this summer, but he has failed to impress so far.

The excellent form of Andros Townsend has meant Lamela has played a peripheral role for the north London club so far, starting just five games – all of which have come in the cup competitions.

Lamela showed glimpses of his potential in Wednesday night's League Cup win over Hull, although he did miss a penalty, but the Argentinian admits he still needs time to adjust to the rigours of the English game.

"I think I need a bit of time," Lamela said.

"I feel good here, although getting used to life here in every sense is a completely different thing. I've barely been here two months, so time is maybe what I need.

"I need training, a bit of rhythm, some games. English football is very different from the game in Italy, much more physical, whereas Serie A is more tactical.

"It's not necessarily more difficult, but it's just different. This is a style of football I like very much, though, and I think, with the way I play, it will be very suited to my game."

Barrier

Manager Andre Villas-Boas hopes the fact that Lamela's family have moved to London will help the former River Plate man, who enjoyed two successful seasons at Roma after moving to Europe from Argentina.

The Tottenham boss, a fluent Spanish speaker, has been trying to help Lamela break down the language barrier that he thinks has hindered the youngster's progress since he signed for Spurs.

Lamela is convinced he retains the confidence of the Spurs boss and is sure he will get enough game time for him to be considered for next year's World Cup Argentina squad.

"My moment will come and I will make the difference," Lamela said.

"You always train thinking that you're going to play. Sooner or later, my moment will arrive."

Tottenham scraped past Hull for the second time in four days on Wednesday to set up a League Cup quarter-final grudge match against West Ham.