With Richarlison and Dejan Kulusevski absent with injuries and Lucas Moura only recently returning to fitness, Spurs are still looking for a third attacker to feature in Antonio Conte's favoured 3-4-3. Bryan Gil has been an unused substitute in most Premier League games this season, but two impressive Champions League cameos have made him a reliable option for the Italian manager.
The Spaniard came on for the final five minutes of the 3-2 victory over Eintracht Frankfurt a fortnight ago, winning a penalty with some excellent footwork which Kane ultimately blazed over. Following on from impressing briefly against the current Europa League champions, Gil received another opportunity against Sporting CP this past Wednesday.
With just under 20 minutes of normal time to spare, Gil was introduced in place of Matt Doherty and once again showed flashes of why Fabio Paratici engineered his move to the club.
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Speaking in his press conference ahead of Tottenham returning to Premier League action, Conte was asked about Gil and his improvements after his loan move with Valencia and provided an interesting comparison to a current Premier League star.
He said: "For Gil, it was really important to go out last season and play more games in Spain because we're talking about a league that you don't have to be so strong to play in this league. There's more technical quality, and for him, it was really positive to go there and play games.
"But I'm sure about Gil's future because we're talking about a player who sees football. When I ask him something in the training session, he understands quickly and also, and his desire is to become an important player.
"If I have to compare him with someone, I can see him like Bernardo Silva at [Man City] in his structure. But, for me, at this moment, Silva is physically stronger than him, but we are talking about this type of player."
Spurs are still without Kulusevski and Richarlison for this weekend's game against Bournemouth, and after two Premier League defeats, where Conte opted to play a 3-5-2, he is likely to revert back to a formation with three forwards as he did on Wednesday.
Lucas was the recipient of the third spot in the week and struggled to have a significant impact in his first start of the season, and while Gil provides an alternative, Conte seems to have played down the chances of the 21-year-old filling the third spot in a possible front three on Saturday.
"Bryan Gil is a player that I always said to you is a really good prospect but physically is not so strong. At the moment, we were pushing a lot, and making his substitution was important because he is very good at one-v-one.
"He has a good personality. For sure, if I have to ask Gil to defend. In this moment, I think Gil can be useful for this type of situation. It wasn't the first time, as it also happened against Frankfurt. It means I believe in him, otherwise, I don't risk playing him in the Champions League.
"But I try to find the right moments when he can be useful for the situation we're facing at that moment."
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