Fasten your seatbelts for the strange, mysterious story of Erik Lamela.Where is the Argentine? Will he ever play for Tottenham again? Was he a figment of all our imaginations?These are the questions on the lips of Spurs fans who have been eagerly awaiting his return to full training.The 25-year-old was last spotted making a substitute appearance in the EFL Cup defeat to Liverpool in October.A wall of silence has surrounded his absence, with the official reason being that he's had a hip injury.With a weekly wage of £65,000-a-week, he's one of the club's top earners, so they would rather like him back playing sometime in the next millennium.In that vein, Mauricio Pochettino allowed him to go back to Rome - incidentally, the home of his former club, where he seemed a little happier and more settled - for treatment.

What's actually going on?

It's well-known that the attacking midfielder has also had his off-field problems.

The Telegraph reported in January that his return had been delayed because his brother had been seriously injured in a car accident. The player was also thought to be deeply upset about the death of his much-loved bulldog Simba.

Lamela hit back at those claims, tweeting: "Just to be clear, I am in Roma at the moment recovering for an injury and not for any other thing that is not to do with football!"

That's his story and he's sticking to it. There's something rather odd and secretive about his continued absence, however, and the Daily Mail may have got to the bottom of it.

The newspaper is making the audacious claim that Pochettino ordered his medical staff to assess Lamela after a scan showed that there was no problem with his hip at all.

So, is the injury real? 

The manager's compatriot is therefore being made to train alone and could already have played his last game in a season that started so brightly on a personal note with a goal against Everton.

Argentina have also been missing out on his services, having to make do with Lionel Messi instead.

As for Tottenham, you can't blame Pochettino for growing exasperated.

Lamela no longer bears the burden of being the club's record signing, now sharing that £30million price tag with the even more peculiar case of Moussa Sissoko.

The sooner his future is sorted, though, the sooner it will become clear just what has gone on behind the scenes at White Hart Lane.