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Soccer-Free-kick king Eriksen has few rivals, says Pochettino

By Martyn Herman SWANSEA, Wales, Oct 4 (Reuters) - Christian Eriksen netted two superb free kicks to earn Tottenham Hotspur a 2-2 draw at Swansea City on Sunday and his manager Mauricio Pochettino believes the Dane's dead-ball skills rival anyone in the Premier League. Eriksen, 23, equalised twice for Tottenham after Andre Ayew's header and a Harry Kane own goal had put the Swans ahead in an entertaining game at the Liberty Stadium. His first, in the 27th minute, left poorly-positioned Swansea keeper Lukasz Fabianski flat-footed, but there was no doubting the quality of his second in the 65th minute when he curled a fizzing right-footer over the wall and into the net. "He has a real quality with his delivery and his free kicks," Pochettino, who felt his side should have earned all three points, told reporters. "I think he is one of the best, or maybe the best in the Premier League, from those situations." Playmaker Eriksen scored 12 goals last season for Tottenham, including a last-minute winner in the corresponding fixture, but had not registered in the current campaign until Sunday. He could easily have scored a hat-trick of free kicks while having several other efforts narrowly off target. "Today he was fantastic, his display," Pochettino said. "You need to have ability to score goals like that, but he does spend lots of time practising them too. "It's not just about his free kicks though. He is a very professional player with his work rate. I'm very happy for him and he is a very important player for us." While Tottenham, unbeaten in the league since the opening day of the season, missed a chance to move into the top four, Garry Monk's Swansea are winless in five games in all competitions. "It was much more like our old selves today and you could see the passion and desire were massive," Monk, whose side are 11th, said. "If we hadn't conceded those two soft free kicks we would have won today." Swansea are still to beat Spurs in nine Premier League matches, and were denied at the death when Spurs keeper Hugo Lloris tipped a Federico Fernandez header against the bar. "Was the same as last year," Monk said. "Eriksen and Lloris! That was a tremendous save." England striker Kane, who sliced Jonjo Shelvey's corner horribly into his own net to give Swansea a 2-1 halftime lead, was substituted after subdued display. "I'm not worried about Harry," Pochettino said. "These things happen and he put in a great effort for the team." (Editing by Ed Osmond)