Monaco striker Radamel Falcao aims to show English fans what he's all about - finally!

13 September 2016 18:23

Monaco have warned Tottenham that Radamel Falcao's two years of frustration in English football could be felt in the Champions League at Wembley on Wednesday.

The striker arrived in England with Manchester United in 2014 with a reputation as one of the world's most lethal strikers but scored only four times during a season-long loan before joining Chelsea on a similar deal.

There he played even less football, scoring only once before Chelsea also chose not to sign him on a permanent basis.

After returning to parent club Monaco, Falcao is again playing first-team football. He has yet had time to rediscover the level that made him so highly thought of, but both his team-mate Joao Moutinho and manager Leonardo Jardim believe it is only a matter of time before he does.

Moutinho, who also revealed he came within "a few short minutes" of joining Spurs from Porto in 2012, said: "It's true that he probably didn't have his greatest spell in football while he was here, but he was injured a lot of the time so didn't manage a lot of minutes on the field.

"The Falcao that I'm seeing right at the moment is a Falcao that's really determined and working very hard, and in a good moment with how he's playing.

"Let's hope he puts in a good performance, maybe scores a goal or creates a couple of assists, that'd be great. Certainly the Falcao we're seeing now is on form."

Jardim said: "I'm convinced Falcao will get back to the level we saw him playing at Porto and Atletico Madrid.

"Certainly the work he is putting in to achieve this bodes well for the future and he is certainly striving hard to get back to how he was playing.

"He could feature (against Tottenham) and if he does, we'll see how he is, and how he evolves during the game. We've got other ways of setting up. If he has to come off, we've got other solutions on the bench. We'll see how things go."

Jardim, whose goalkeeper Danijel Subasic faces a late fitness test, worked with Tottenham's Eric Dier while the two were at Sporting Lisbon.

The England international earlier on Wednesday signed a new contract to commit him to the club until 2021, having established himself as one of Europe's finest holding midfielders.

His development will have surprised many who saw him rotated between central defence and full-back during his first year at White Hart Lane. Jardim, however, insists he expected him to do so and believes he helped to prepare his transformation.

"He evolved his style of play when he was with me," he said. "He played two different positions: holding midfield and centre back. It's no surprise to me that he's showing later in his career that he can play in two different positions and be as good in either.

"He's a top player. I hope he'll have a great career but I hope he's not at his best (on Wednesday).

"It's always very important whether it's English lads going abroad, or French or Portuguese young players. Getting experience in foreign leagues is really positive. It teaches them to cope with adversity and gives them different experience.

"When they go back, they benefit in their own leagues. It's important for their benefit and growth."

Source: PA