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Tottenham Hotspur winger Erik Lamela turned in an underwhelming performance in his side's 2-0 defeat against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday night, and manager Mauricio Pochettino can't afford to trust him again when his side host Arsenal in another London derby on Saturday.

On the chalkboard

The Argentina international was perhaps something of a surprise name on the team-sheet given he hasn't exactly been a regular in the Spurs XI in the Premier League this season, but he had a big opportunity to impress as his boss switched from a 3-4-1-2 system to a 4-2-3-1 against the Blues.

It wasn't a tactic that worked out as the Lilywhites suffered their second successive top-flight defeat however, with Lamela failing to bring much to proceedings before he was replaced by Fernando Llorente in the 70th minute.

The 26-year-old got the nod to start against Maurizio Sarri's men ahead of teammate Lucas Moura, but he might not be so lucky for the visit of the Gunners at the weekend.

Should he be dropped?

Without a doubt.

The attacker did nothing to convince his manager that he can be trusted to make a difference both offensively and defensively in what is potentially shaping up to be Tottenham's biggest match of the campaign, as the chasing pack continues to close in on them with their form dipping.

Spurs ideally need all three points against Unai Emery's visitors to boost their hopes of cementing their Champions League qualification spot, and they need to be at their very best against a side that thrashed Bournemouth 5-1 on Wednesday.

It remains to be seen which formation Pochettino will go with, but even if he does stick with the 4-2-3-1 Lamela should not be in the XI.