Ange Postecoglou declared in August that he always wins a trophy in his second season.
Well, despite the fact his team are 15th in the Premier League table, he's still on course to deliver on his manifesto.
On Thursday night, Tottenham Hotspur reached the Europa League semi-finals, with Dominic Solanke's spot-kick enough to oust Eintracht Frankfurt at Waldstadion.
Spurs will now face Bodø/Glimt in the semi-finals, they have become the first-ever Norwegian club to reach the last four of any UEFA competition, with the Lilywhites thereby firm favourites to reach the final in Bilbao.
If Tottenham are going to end their 17-year wait for silverware, aiming to capture the UEFA Cup for the first time since 1984, one player in particular will be key, given that he's reminiscent of a Spurs star of yesteryear.
How good Mousa Dembélé was at Tottenham
When one thinks of Tottenham at their peak under Mauricio Pochettino, the players who immediately spring to mind might be Harry Kane, Son Heung-min, Dele Alli, Hugo Lloris, Toby Alderweireld or Jan Vertonghen.
However, no Spurs supporter will overlook or ever forget Mousa Dembélé's importance to that side.
Back in the summer of 2012, the Belgian joined Tottenham from Fulham for a reported fee of £15m, going on to make 249 appearances for Spurs, before departing for Guangzhou City in the Chinese Super League in January 2019.
During his time at the club, Tottenham went from being a mid-table Premier League outfit to regular top four finishers and Champions League Finalists, and the pivotal role Dembélé played in this transformation cannot be forgotten.
Charlie Eccleshare of The Athletic described him as the 'lynchpin of Pochettino's' team, praising his 'ball-carrying skills' and 'ability to evade pressure'.
Meantime, Bart Vlietstra of the Guardian believes that, in his prime, Dembélé was 'the best midfielder in the world', while his former teammate Kyle Walker would agree, stating that he was "probably the best player I have ever seen play football”.
How Postecoglou would love to have Dembélé at his peak patrolling and controlling his midfield, something Spurs have severely lacked throughout this season, but is one current Spurs star showcasing some of the same qualities?
The current Spurs star who could be replicating Dembélé
Earlier this season, it would've been inarguable Dejan Kuluševski was Tottenham's most dangerous attacker, scoring in five successive matches just before Christmas, on target against Chelsea, Rangers, Southampton, Manchester United and Liverpool during this sequence.
However, more recently, the Swede has spent a few weeks on the sidelines due to a foot injury suffered against Manchester City in February, before making his return at Molineux last Sunday.
This is a major boost for Postecoglou, ahead of the aforementioned Europa League semi-final against Bodø/Glimt, and the table below illustrates why.
As the table outlines, since the start of last season, only Son Heung-min and Brennan Johnson have been involved in more Spurs goals than Kuluševski.
However, his similarities to fellow left-footer Dembélé come stylistically.
Jay Harris and Anantaajith Raghuraman of the Athletic praise the 24-year-old's 'impressive running power' as well as his 'durability' and 'defensive work' rate while, according to FBref.com, only nine players have recorded more progressive carries in the Premier League this season.
Ben McAleer of the Guardian adds that Kuluševski is 'absolutely vital' for this Tottenham team, asserting that he has been their 'most consistent player' of the Ange-era.
Following Tottenham's 4-0 demolition of Manchester City in November, speaking during Sky Sports' coverage, Gary Neville labelled Kuluševski as "brilliant" and a "serious player", adding that he uses his "strength and running power" to "subtley beat players" with ease.
So, while there are stylistic similarities to Dembélé and Kuluševski, the biggest overlap between the duo could be the fact they go under-the-radar a bit as Spurs' pivotal unsung heroes.