Spurs Israel with Ledley King

Summary

In this special English episode of the Space Israel podcast, hosts Rafael David, Boaz Goldschmidt, and special guest, Tottenham legend Ledley King, share an unforgettable conversation. King discusses his first visit to Israel, his memorable moments with Tottenham, including his debut, scoring records, and winning the Carling Cup. He also reflects on the challenges posed by injuries, his thoughts on success in football, and his admiration for teammates and opponents alike, highlighting Gareth Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo. King's post-retirement roles, potential coaching aspirations, and the importance of club legends returning to nurture young talent are also explored. The episode culminates in King's thoughts on Tottenham's current team and the impact of Antonio Conte, leaving fans inspired and looking forward to the future.

Takeaways

• 😀 The podcast 'Space Israel' is presented in English for this episode, featuring Rafael David, Boss Goldschmidt, and special guest, Tottenham legend Ledley King.
• 🙌 Ledley King expresses his excitement for being in Israel for the first time and looks forward to performing for the fans there.
• 📺 King reflects on his debut against Liverpool in 1999 and discusses the nervousness and excitement of playing his first game for Tottenham.
• 💪 Discussing his career highlights, King identifies winning the Carling Cup as his most memorable moment, emphasizing the pride and joy of being part of Tottenham's history.
• 💻 King explores the concept of success in football, suggesting that personal achievement and team success are both valuable and subjective.
• 😷 King shares his struggles with injuries, particularly his knee issue that significantly affected his training and performance, highlighting the challenges athletes face in maintaining their fitness and form.
• 🔥 Among his teammates, King highlights Gareth Bale and Luka Modrić as the most exceptional players he played alongside, noting their contributions to Tottenham and their success in their careers.
• 👍 Faced against formidable opponents like Zinedine Zidane and Cristiano Ronaldo, King regards Ronaldo as the toughest competitor he played against, acknowledging his extraordinary career achievements.
• 📸 The episode touches on Tottenham's recent performances, with King expressing optimism about the current team's strength and potential under Antonio Conte's leadership.
• 👨‍💻 King discusses his brief coaching experience under José Mourinho, sharing insights into the learning opportunities and challenges of transitioning from player to coach.
• 🏆 Reflecting on Tottenham's journey to the Champions League final, King describes it as an unparalleled experience, filled with dramatic matches and a testament to the team's spirit and resilience.

Q & A

Why was the podcast episode conducted in English instead of Hebrew?

The podcast episode was conducted in English to accommodate the special guest, Ledley King, a Tottenham legend, who was visiting Israel for the first time.

What was Ledley King's reaction to visiting Israel?

Ledley King expressed gratitude for being in Israel, describing it as a beautiful place he had always wanted to visit. He highlighted the opportunity to perform in front of fans in Israel as a great experience.

How did Ledley King start his career at Tottenham?

Ledley King started his career at Tottenham through the academy and made his debut in 1999 against Liverpool in Enfield.

What was a memorable moment for Ledley King in his playing career at Tottenham?

A memorable moment for Ledley King in his playing career at Tottenham was winning the Carling Cup, which he described as his favorite game looking back.

How did injuries affect Ledley King's career?

Injuries significantly impacted Ledley King's career, particularly a knee injury that stopped him from training regularly at the age of 26, limiting his potential to become one of the best in his position globally.

Who were the best players Ledley King played with at Tottenham?

Ledley King mentioned playing with greats like Teddy Sheringham, David Ginola, and Les Ferdinand early in his career. However, he identified Luka Modric and Gareth Bale as the players who reached the highest level during his time.

Who is the best player Ledley King has played against?

Ledley King initially mentioned Zinedine Zidane and Ronaldinho but concluded that Cristiano Ronaldo would be the best player he played against, considering Ronaldo's achievements and impact on football.

What was Ledley King's best moment as a Tottenham fan after retirement?

Ledley King's best moment as a Tottenham fan after retirement was reaching the Champions League final, especially the journey through the tournament and the incredible semi-final match against Ajax.

How does Ledley King view the current Tottenham team?

Ledley King views the current Tottenham team as one of the strongest he has seen, highlighting the successful signings in the summer and the increased competition for places within the squad.

Does Ledley King have any plans to pursue coaching in the future?

Ledley King expressed interest in coaching, mentioning his experience working with José Mourinho's coaching staff and his intention to do his coaching badges before deciding if coaching is the path he wants to pursue.

Outlines

00:00

🎤 Introduction and Guest Arrival

The video opens with a warm welcome to the 'Space Israel' podcast, transitioning from Hebrew to English for this special episode. Rafael David introduces the team, including Boss Goldschmidt, and their esteemed guest, Tottenham legend Ledley King. King expresses his excitement about visiting Israel for the first time, acknowledging the beauty of the country and the opportunity to connect with fans. The hosts share their own excitement and anticipation for Tottenham's performance in Israel, highlighting the personal significance of King's presence and their interactions with the team at their hotel.

05:00

⚽ King's Tottenham Journey and Memorable Moments

Ledley King reflects on his beginnings at Tottenham, starting from the academy and leading up to his memorable debut against Liverpool in 1999. He shares the nervous excitement of being called to play mid-game and the challenging experience of his first match. King also discusses his first goal for Tottenham, which held the record for the fastest goal for 17 years, and his pride in that achievement despite the goal's quality. The conversation shifts to King's career highlights, particularly winning the Carling Cup, and the challenges he faced with injuries during the 2007-2008 season, emphasizing the strategic decisions made regarding his playtime due to knee issues.

10:01

🤔 Defining Success and Overcoming Injuries

King offers his perspective on defining success in football, emphasizing personal achievement and the fulfillment of potential over collective accolades. He candidly discusses the impact of his chronic knee injury on his career, particularly how it limited his training and affected his performance. Despite these challenges, King focused on contributing positively to the team and ensuring his presence improved team dynamics. The discussion also touches on the importance of enjoying football and making career decisions that align with personal happiness and professional growth.

15:02

🌟 Teammates, Opponents, and Transitioning Post-Retirement

King reminisces about playing alongside Tottenham legends and highlights Luka Modric and Gareth Bale as two of the most talented players he's encountered. He then discusses the formidable opponents he's faced, singling out Cristiano Ronaldo as perhaps the best he's played against. The conversation shifts to King's life after retirement, focusing on his favorite moments as a Tottenham fan, particularly the team's journey to the Champions League final. King also shares insights into the current Tottenham team's strengths and his positive outlook for their performance under Antonio Conte's leadership.

20:03

🚀 Future Aspirations and Legacy

The final segment delves into King's brief coaching stint under José Mourinho and his openness to pursuing coaching badges for a potential future in football management, starting possibly with academy roles. King expresses the importance of club legends engaging with younger players and the broader community, emphasizing the positive impact on fans. The discussion concludes with a light-hearted debate on whether a prime Ledley King could successfully mark a prime Harry Kane, showcasing King's humility and respect for current talents. The session ends with gratitude for King's participation and hopeful sentiments for Tottenham's success.

Keywords

💡Tottenham Legend

Ladley King is introduced as a 'Tottenham legend', indicating his status as an iconic and celebrated player for the Tottenham Hotspurs football club. As captain, he led the team to win the 2008 Carling Cup, their last major trophy, cementing his place in the club's history. His career was hampered by injuries, but he maintained an exceptionally high level of performance and commitment to the team.

💡Injuries

King suffered from recurring knee problems throughout his career, requiring multiple operations. From age 26 he was unable to train normally with the team, which impacted his fitness and performance. However he adapted his game to still contribute at a high level, using his defensive intelligence and leadership.

💡Trophies

Winning trophies is seen as an indicator of success in football. King says his best moment was captaining Tottenham to victory in the 2008 Carling Cup final. While he didn't win many team honours, he defines success more by personal development to be the best player possible.

💡Defender

As a defender, King's main role was preventing goals, rather than scoring them. He formed strong partnerships with other defenders like Ledley King. Despite his injury issues, he was regarded among the best in his position during his peak years.

💡Champions League Final

In 2019, Tottenham reached the UEFA Champions League final for the first time ever, losing 2-0 to Liverpool. King says this thrilling European run was his highlight as a fan post-retirement. The comeback against Ajax epitomized Tottenham's perseverance.

💡Preseason

Preseason training is crucial for teams to build fitness and prepare tactical plans for the coming campaign. King discusses observing Tottenham's intense preseason under manager Antonio Conte, feeling it has taken preparation to even higher levels of physicality.

💡Coaching

After retirement, King spent time assisting manager Jose Mourinho with first-team coaching. He valued learning from Mourinho's methods up-close despite a difficult season. Long-term, he is considering starting his coaching badges and working his way up.

💡Pressing

Pressing is a tactical style involving coordinated high pressure from multiple players to win back possession. King identifies pressing as energy-intensive but notes current Tottenham players are reaching new fitness levels to sustain this demanding strategy.

💡World Cup

The 2022 World Cup starts in November, dividing the normal Premier League season into two distinct parts. King suggests a target could be achieving a strong league position prior to this break.

💡Prime

In a hypothetical matchup between a peak King and peak Harry Kane, King jokes he would be confident up against any striker in his prime years with two good knees. While respecting Kane's quality, at his best King backed his own defending abilities.

Highlights

Ladley King discusses making his debut for Tottenham against Liverpool

King scored the fastest ever Premier League goal, a record that stood for 17 years

King says winning the League Cup in 2008 was his best moment at Tottenham

King struggled with knee injuries later in his career but tried to still help the team

King says Gareth Bale and Luka Modric were the best players he played with at Spurs

King played against Zinedine Zidane but says Cristiano Ronaldo was the best opponent

King believes he could have reached a higher level without his knee injuries

Reaching the Champions League final in 2019 was King's favorite Spurs moment since retiring

King says Tottenham have had a great summer and the current squad looks very strong

King says the fitness levels and intensity in training have gone up under Conte

King believes Conte can lead Spurs to success and win trophies

Seeing the mural of himself in Tottenham was a special moment for King

King enjoyed his coaching experience under Mourinho at Spurs

King may return to coaching after getting more qualifications

King jokes even with one knee he could mark a prime Harry Kane

Transcripts

[Applause]

hello and welcome to space israel i'm

rafael david usually we are doing the

podcast in hebrew this time

we'll change it a bit we'll do it in

english

i will explain in a second first of all

i will

introduce the

rest of the

team today we have boss goldschmidt

hello everybody and our special special

guest

tottenham legend lady king hello

everyone thank you very much for joining

us it's a real big pleasure we i think

we cannot express how much uh we're

excited that you are here with us

and tottenham here it's

incredible yeah no no thank you thank

you for having me it's my first time in

in israel uh and it's a beautiful

beautiful place i've always wanted to

come here now i have the opportunity and

uh

you know it's great for us to be here in

front of our fans out here to be able to

perform and hopefully put on a good show

for for you guys so uh yeah we're really

looking forward to that we already enjoy

every second of your year in israel

because we were earlier in the hotel we

saw the players so for us it's uh

i think one of the biggest experiences

at tottenham fans yeah so even if the

game won't be that good

it would be okay for us

no we'll be good it will be yeah

um i want to start with you how does it

feel to sit next to ladle king

it's such a big excitement

since

many of you know that uh

i have a shirt of ludley it was my

second shirt that i bought and uh it's

uh right behind him with all the

signatures and uh after it's a good

lecture as well yeah yeah

good luck

i'm unbeaten with this shirt great uh

and uh after this uh

meeting uh it will uh will be framed and

in my house

retiring is unbeaten

okay let's start uh with your uh

beginning of in uh tottenham you're

started in the academy

and then if i'm not mistaken in 99 you

started that playing uh

tottenham against uh

liverpool in enfield yes yes yeah um

like the effort yeah yeah it's true yeah

there's a few i was speaking to michael

dawson recently and his first game is

against liverpool as well

um so yeah we like to have a nice easy

easy start yeah

[Laughter]

does it mean if you start against

liverpool in your debut maybe you become

a legend so let's see who is the next

one hopefully hopefully

how did it feel for you to start

to play in tottenham in the

after the academy yeah i mean i've been

at tottenham since i was 14 years old

um

so i kind of worked my way through

worked my way up

uh and

you know before i made my debut i was

obviously um like training with the

first team

on a regular basis i was traveling to

games

uh often on the bench

so you know i was kind of i was waiting

for my opportunity and you know my

opportunity to come against liverpool i

was on the bench

in the game and uh maurizio torico got

sent off he was playing left back

just before half time he got sent off

and uh the manager at the time george

graham looked to me and said you'll be

coming on at half time

so yeah very very nervous in the whole

halftime you know in the break i'm

i'm composing myself getting ready uh

for my big moment in the in the second

half to come on and uh yeah it was a

tough tough first game we we lost three

two we was tuning up when i come on

we lost three two uh it was a difficult

game but uh yeah a great moment to make

your debut and uh

you know it's every boy's dream to

obviously uh you know play in the

premier league and and for me to play

for tottenham was my dream and uh yeah

you know although we lost the game it

was a great moment for myself yeah yeah

and another great moment i'm sure it's

the your first goal

it was

also the fastest goal until shane long

came three years ago yeah how special

was it

scored your first goal and also

festus yeah i mean i was playing

midfield

during that time and

to be honest with you

i didn't really think too much about it

during my career because i was obviously

a defender

and that's the that's my first and

foremost you know

uh thing to do is to make sure i'm

defending so

goals was always a bonus um but i didn't

like the goal itself it wasn't a very

good goal so

uh you know although when people spoke

about the record i wish they never

watched the goal because the goal wasn't

very good

but of course you know as time goes on

and the record lasts you know i think

it's 17 years or so they lasted

after a while as you get older you start

to enjoy it especially when i retired

you know i kept hearing my name

and it was because of the record

um and then yeah i was just getting

comfortable with it and then shane long

obviously beat it uh

i think he'd be by a good three seconds

so uh

you know he's one he's going to last a

very long time but of course you know to

score my first goal was was very

very proud and uh you know i look back

now and think yeah it was it was nice to

have the record

yeah um what's your best moment in your

playing career at tottenham

it has to be

winning winning the carling cup of

course you know

the last captain to win the trophy and

yeah you know i played my first final

when i was i think i was 21 my first

final uh the next one was the the

carning cup in 2008.

by now i'm a little bit more mature um

i'm captain uh and i wasn't sure when

the next opportunity was gonna come so i

was determined to make sure that

that we won this one and uh yeah it was

a great great great feeling to be able

to to to be part of the history of the

club

um it was a special feeling and my my

favorite game without a doubt for

looking back now yeah yeah and this this

season

it was very tough season for you yeah

with all the injuries and

you played most of the time only in the

league up against arsenal and chelsea

yeah i mean i think that i believe that

i had my

i had an operation in this that summer

uh 2007

so it took a while to recover from that

knee knee uh operation it was quite a

big one and

ramos who's the manager at the time one

day ramos was

kind of saving me for the cup rather

than playing me in the league and

i think i only played in semis the two

semi-final games and

the the league cup final and uh

after the cup final because my knee

still didn't feel right even though i

was playing wasn't he still didn't feel

right so we kind of decided that as soon

as

uh we got knocked out of europe

then i would finish my season there and

go

and

find a way to kind of uh help money so i

think we lost to psv

in in in europe that season and

straight after that i think it was like

february my season finished i started

going around the world trying to speak

to different surgeons to see if they

could help my knee because it just it

just didn't feel right at a time

so yeah didn't play many games that

season but

luckily for me i think i was looking

back enough i think i managed 29 games

overall the next season so you know

maybe just stopping there and and

kind of getting some more help with

money probably helped yeah so you played

the the most important games so games

against arsenal and one chess yeah yeah

i think

you know i can't remember exactly how it

happened but

uh

i think this is a big reason of why i

lifted the trophy with robbie as well

because robbie had captained the team

throughout the

the stages early stages of the

competition

so obviously i played the two semis in

the final and you know i didn't want to

feel like i'd just

come in for the for the glory

so

you know i decided in my head you know

what robbie had kind of got us so far

uh if we win it i'll lift the trophy

with him so so yeah yeah it's a nice

gesture from from both of you i think

yeah yeah it was great and robbie would

be someone who cared about the club he'd

been at the club a long time so i knew

how much it meant to him as well so when

i look back at the pictures now it's

nice that we shared that moment together

yeah it's a very very nice picture

hopefully in the future we will have

some more pictures yeah we need some

more pictures now yeah for sure maybe

the visit in israel will uh inspire yeah

yeah i'm sure so

it's it's a big

question it's about success and i know

at the time

i read about uh hugo's discussions with

poach at the time

about how you can define success because

you can have a third goalkeeper in a

strong side like city or liverpool uh

who's winning titles uh and on the other

hand you can have like a a

defender and mid-table championship uh

side playing week in weekend weekend

week out

giving it his all

and is he not successful i mean

so so i think the big question is and

this is obviously a big discussion

surrounding you know harry kane and

everything but for you as someone who

did win a title how do you define

success as a football player is it the

titles or is it just the personal

feeling

i think everyone probably has a

different feeling um

you know

what you mentioned what you described is

is a very good scenario you know someone

who's

winning trophies but hardly kicking a

ball

or someone who's playing week in week

out

hasn't won anything is you know

it's what success is to you

i suppose and to

to your club

so everyone's got different

different kind of expectations

you know for me you start you start the

journey

as a young kid and your aim is to be the

best that you can be

you know for me that was success to be

the best player i could be so when i

look back on my career i asked myself

you know was i able to

achieve a level

that i'm happy with when i look back you

know was i able to be

the person or the player that i wanted

to be when i was a young kid that i

wanted to grow up and

and that for me is you know success in

my own in my own mind in my own head

of course it's a team game and of course

you want success with your team and you

know there's nothing better than sharing

success with with a team but

um

you know within that you have to look at

the individual when every individual has

to be the best he can be right and when

you when you can get a team that can

achieve that then you can go on to

hopefully win things

um

and another thing was for me was i

always

you know you want to enjoy

your football as well you know i've seen

many players move leave clubs make the

wrong moves at times

um

you know so if you're happy

and you can you feel that you can be you

can still be the best player you can be

and still

kind of get

the

i don't say the accolades but people's

attention as being a top top player

then you know

that's as good as

anything for me and is this something

that you um speak to the younger players

about like jeffy coming through do they

come and consult with not really no

because you know i think everyone needs

to everyone has their own

kind of ideas you know is

it's always a difficult situation it's

always a difficult situation and never

never an easy one so um

you know you just hope that you put

yourself in in the place as a football

club where

players feel that they can achieve

everything they want to achieve

looking back on your career you

mentioned the success and

all the career if

the injuries and the

many injuries and operations

how do you think it uh

hurts your uh

full potential in there yeah of course

of course um

you know the age of 26 i believe

uh

it's when i stopped training

so

you know mentally uh

and i want to say physically apart from

one knee

i i felt

you know i was ready to to kind of kick

on and become

you know

one of the best in in my position in the

world you know i felt like i had all the

tools to to be able to do that

um

but obviously yeah my knee injury kind

of stopped stopped me from training so

any player that can't train

it's very difficult to to improve uh you

know my levels of fitness wasn't the

same as my teammates

um

anyone who kind of is coming back from

injury will tell you they don't feel

themselves until they play a certain

amount of games you know every game

felt like my first game because i wasn't

able to train and get a level of fitness

in in

in training so

yeah it was definitely it was definitely

difficult but for me it was about

helping my team at that point it was

about you know understanding that i

wasn't gonna

kind of

be

the exact player that

you know as good as i i would have hoped

you know i believe that i was on the

path to be but after that was about

trying to make the team a better team

when i played

uh you know i i needed to be useful

because i wasn't there on a training

pitch i had to make sure that

you know when i played we was a better

team and i helped everyone around me

yeah and it didn't

affect the coordination with your uh

defenders

i mean to a certain to a certain extent

it has to because

i didn't run during the week yeah i

didn't run i didn't kick a board in

twist i didn't turn i didn't do all the

things that

that you do during the week so it it

definitely had an impact but

not enough that i couldn't still

play a decent level so

um

yeah you know i suppose i had

kind of other things that you know i

believe that i was a rounded a

well-rounded player that allowed me to

be able to kind of

make up for

you know not being able to be as fit as

i would have liked to be not being able

to as fast as i'd like to but still

i still understood the game and i still

made it work yeah yeah okay um

well we want to ask

a question yes i would like to ask about

uh if you mentioned

your partners uh

who was the best player you played with

and how was it

the feeling to play with them

well you know when i was young i played

with you know players like teddy

sharingan and

david genola

there's ferdinand these were these were

top players you know players that i'd

i was watching at school

i was watching at school and then you

know next thing you know you're in the

training with them and then you're

playing with them so

they were fantastic players but i'd have

to say kind of during my

my career once i was kind of established

some of the players that we brought in

you know vanderva

edgar davids was a top player

um luka luka was

probably

luca and gareth bale i probably have to

say

reach the highest level of anyone that i

played with

uh as we've seen within real madrid and

you know how many champions leagues have

won and

um

luca was a fantastic player he was

fantastic and not too many players or

not too many people knew him before he

joined

um so it wasn't like we were signing a

ready-made star

you know we'd signed someone who had a

lot of potential and uh we could see

that in training but it took him a year

or so to adjust and um

and then once he kind of started playing

in his real position

because he was playing off the left a

little bit in the midfield at first but

once he started playing centrally

he was unbelievable but i'd say gareth

um

the season before he left on them was

that's probably the highest level

of anyone that i'd seen during my time

he was unstoppable probably probably the

third best player in the world at that

point he was so probably gareth yeah

there is a fun if you mentioned luca was

quite

people didn't

know him when he came to tartan yeah

there's a funny story because it was uh

in the israeli media they said that he's

coming to a team in israel

before really okay so this is the

funny story that uh

a team that was uh makabi tel aviv not

uh even in the champions league

uh wanted uh luca and now is uh one of

uh the best midfielders in

in football history yeah it's true yeah

um

it's funny how things work yeah

like all those myths about messi almost

signing for like black bear or something

i think luca made the right move yeah

no doubt

mentioned the best player you played

with him

who is the best player you planned

against

oh

so i used to say zidane

i played against sudan in uh that's

unbelievable

that you played against the yeah yeah

yeah he was a international team

national team he was he was unbelievable

um one aldenia was special as well

special player

but i think when when it's all said and

done i think cristiano ronaldo will be

the best that i played against um

you know his numbers and what he's

achieved yeah i think he's going to go

down ahead of zidane in terms of

you know when people are looking the

best players in history

so i would have to say ronaldo but

you know i played against ronaldo a few

times i played against sudan once and

you know in that one game sudan showed

me why he was why he was a superstar you

know he scored two goals a penalty and a

free kick and

and won the game for france uh

and yeah he was he was special but but

you know ronaldo will be

will be one of the greatest two free

players ever to to have played the game

so so ronaldo yeah so no no arie and

robin since you stopped him no i mean

i'd love to put him at the top

and say i tackled him

robin was a top player as well fantastic

player yeah honestly he was uh

he's a special player himself yeah how

was the the tackle that taken for you

yeah i mean

ordinary yeah just like any other taco

just another day at the office it's my

job to tackle obviously um

you know robin was way ahead way ahead

of me uh but the ball was in the air so

i you know as a young defender i was

talk run back as hard as possible

the ball's in the air he's got to wait

for it to come down

and let's see if i can put some pressure

on him and uh he took a little bit too

long

he took a little bit too long

and i managed to get the tackle in um

but yeah if he would have shot a split

second earlier

then

i would never have made it but luckily

for me he took too long he didn't know i

was coming which was great i tried to

although i was running fast and hard i

was trying to run quiet as well

so he didn't hear me

yeah

and if we look after

after your retirement uh what's the best

uh moment uh

for as a tottenham fan for you

um

reaching the champions league final has

to be nothing

i mean the whole champions league was

was was amazing really i mean

we struggled in the group

we kind of sneaked our way through the

group and then

you know every time we seemed like we

finished you know we seemed to find a

way and you know we've done that against

uh city yeah of course that game was a

crazy game and and

just when you thought you couldn't get

any any crazier uh

we had the ix ix game so yeah the ice

game was was incredible i think that's

my favorite moment for sure were you

there i wasn't there you know

unfortunately my my uh my youngest

daughter was a birthday first birthday

the days i missed

i missed the game um

so yes it was a regret i wasn't it

wasn't there but you know obviously i

watched the game i had some

some friends and family around and we

watched the game and yeah to say i went

through some some emotions during that

game is an understatement uh it was yeah

it was a crazy game and uh to reach a

champions league final that way it was

incredible yeah of course i think

everybody here felt the same way yeah

yeah was there anyone there

i've been in amsterdam but in a pub okay

that was

crazy

yeah i hug and kiss

everyone

[Laughter]

yeah we have uh we have a pub uh thank

pub that we're going to watch games

there it was

i think uh one of the best since

possible

yeah yes

i wasn't there i was at home but the

rest of the guys here i can testify it

was uh crazy i ripped the shirt out of

me when i was atomic i didn't know what

to do

[Laughter]

strongly

the hulk

let's go

for the current team now yeah how do you

think uh how do you rate it uh compared

to

different teams yes you saw and

i believe this this is one of the

strongest teams that i've seen

i think we've bought very well in the

summer

i think we we've brought players that

that uh

are tested you know we when we talk

about

uh perisic um the sumer

uh let's chat richarlison you know these

are players that

have played at a high level played at

the highest levels um

you know

so i think it's fantastic i think we're

in a strong position at the moment

uh when i looked at the one to 11 it was

always difficult to to pick

you know where our weaknesses were

um

i think what we've done is we've

we've put some pressure on

you know the the one to everyone really

and within the team and i think that's

the best thing you can do when you have

kind of two players for every position

um

it just lifts lifts the

the uh the intensity in training

the competition for places is fierce and

it only you know it only helps the team

so you know speaking to some of the lads

they said that the training is

the level and training has gone up um

you know since the new guys have come in

and

you know that makes me really excited

for this season you know i think we're

in a very good place

and i think you know i'm sure teams will

be we'll be knowing that you know

they'll be knowing that

we've had a good summer

and our squad is looking very strong

added adding to what we already had

which was a a very good team in the

first place yeah you mentioned training

uh we all saw the

footage of the training in south korea

did have you been in the stadium went uh

for this training i was i was there i

was there and um

you know i can i can honestly say i've

come i've had my time and i'm glad i had

my time

but you know i think the training is is

has gone up a level from my time as well

you know the

uh the fitness levels of the players is

more now

they're running more distance they're

covering more distances you know every

team is pressing

which is uh

you know it's hard it's hard to do for

90 minutes so

uh we all know that

antonio conte's teams are always very

very physical and very fit

and you know this is the first

pre-season with him

he joined in last season he had a mini

preseason to get the players up to the

level

uh when he first come in and the team

turned from the

the least fittest team to the fittest

team in six weeks or so so

you could see how much preparation

they'd done in that time so we knew that

preseason was gonna be

gonna be similar um

the lads have said it's been tough but

they've enjoyed it because there's no

bet better feeling than

when you feel strong physically you know

going into that first game of the season

you know you've put the work in in

pre-season you've done everything

possible

um it's a good feeling you know although

the running is tough and at the time

you don't enjoy it after you feel good

and and uh you know speaking to the lads

they feel good at the moment they feel

as fit as they've ever felt

and uh you know that's all that's going

to come into benefit oh that's going to

benefit the team

uh come to start the premier league for

sure we'll see that yeah

and do you think conte can bring us uh

to the place that we want

of course that's the aim that's what

that's what we hope you know we've seen

it before with him he's a winner

um

the players have that mentality now

you know

they look very focused throughout this

preseason they've looked very focused um

and and the mood is that everyone's

looking forward to the season everyone's

excited by it we know that it's

difficult we know there's some very good

teams in the premier league

uh you know it's difficult to win

anything it's difficult to win any cup

but you know there's a good feeling in

the place at the moment and uh

you know of course we want to we want to

try and win we want to try and win

things so that's you know that's the aim

going into the season let's see what we

can do

let's get off to a good start and see

where that takes us yeah hopefully we'll

get to the break for the world cup and

we'll be

yeah yeah i mean that will you know

i'm sure that would be an aim to put

yourself in a good position going into

that world cup you know the season's

almost in two parts now this season so

you know can you put yourself in a good

place in the first part of the season

and uh and then see what happens on the

second half

yeah

you have a question yeah so we saw on

social media lately they had the big uh

mural on the wall um

how was it just

seeing it physically for the first time

yeah it was a special feeling of course

uh you know

i i

heard about the mural you know i spoke

to

um

[Music]

it was actually the supporters

supporters trust that the tottenham

supporters trust that kind of decided it

was me that they wanted to to put on the

wall and it was

and yeah of course you know i was

delighted to

to kind of that they they chose me uh

but it wasn't until i actually you know

went and sorry for the first time that

you know you see the magnitude of it the

size of it

um do you walk by sometimes randomly

just like i know that guy i try to i try

to make sure that you know every now and

then

i just make sure it's still there

so i'll make sure

you know i don't i don't want to do it

too much because yeah it loses it's

frill but every now and then i

definitely go there

um

and and have a look at it and and kind

of just take it in because yeah it was

special it's a special special feeling

you know as i would say i walked up and

down the road as a kid

but i never dreamed of having you know a

big mural with myself that's amazing

wow yeah incredible

um

you had a little spell as

in coaching for uh mourinho

is this something that you planning you

want to do in the future and you enjoyed

it yeah yeah i did enjoy it you know and

it wasn't something i was doing at the

time but when um

jose came in he asked me to be on the

training pitch

um

so so i went in i started to watch i

started to speak to players

and then um then the the covey hit and

the lockdown happened

so

um i stayed away to see the the team

finish the season and then the next

summer

jose called me and said he wants me to

be part of his coaching staff and

yeah it was a you know it's an honor to

to kind of to be to work with him really

you know he's

one of the best managers we've seen um

so yeah it was an opportunity that i

could not turn down and and to kind of

learn from him and see how he operates

uh it was fantastic you know it was a

difficult difficult season he was

playing with no fans in the stadium

uh we got off to a good start you know

around december we was it was top on

stage

but unfortunately you know we couldn't

maintain it and and we started slipping

um

but for me there was some great

experiences you know we beat arsenal at

home we beat mancity at home we beat man

united 6-1 away

there was still some some really good

moments in the season uh

but yeah you know you know i'm thankful

for the opportunity and

you know i always said if i'm going to

come back and do it i'm going to make

sure i do my badges properly and be

ready for it rather than

um you know just coming

at this level without really doing all

my badges so

i will do my badges and i'll see we'll

see if i really enjoy it and feel feel

it then then i'll come back yeah and you

think about uh going to the academy or

uh

still be uh

yeah maybe initially just doing doing

some work with the academy and um

yeah you just never know you know you

for me

i think it's important that i kind of

although i was

working with the first team

it's important for me to actually go

back

and start

you know at the bottom again and really

get as much information as i can

and then kind of build up again because

i've kind of

you know i haven't gone through the

whole all the stages that i needed to so

you know once i do that again

we'll see how i feel

what do you think about a club legend

like you that will come back to

tottenham or and manage academic players

i think it's always important to have

some kind of connection with a football

club

and someone who can can uh can

understand the the young kids and what

what they might be going through yeah of

course for the fans it's also very good

to see the legends coming back to

exactly yeah we have time for one last

question was yeah so we had a zoom

conversation i think a week or so ago

and i already asked you this but i have

to ask again because our listeners have

to hear the answer yeah so

can i change the answer this time

prime leslie king

can he mark prime hurricane

um

okay let me find a way to answer this

prominently king

wasn't didn't really worry about

who he's playing against

well i say prime even with one knee i

didn't really worry

because

you can't worry about you know you can't

worry about who you're playing against

you know you respect them

but

you know you only worry about yourself

and make sure that you're you're ready

to perform at your best level and i

always felt if i performed at my best

level then

i could have i could have a good game

against anyone

but the difficulty is when you're

playing against the top players like a

harry kane

you can have a great game for 90 minutes

against them and they can still score

the winning goal at the end because they

can still end up with two chances two

goals you know and you could have done

most things right

um

so it's very difficult to answer that

question you know i always say the best

players they can find a way you know and

the the difficulty is it's never just

one-on-one for a whole game right it's

never like that you know they can go on

to different players and cause different

players problems that's what the best

players can do so

um

yeah the answer is

the answer is it's complicated in terms

of that but listen harry's

he's he's the best player for for a

reason um

one of the best and the best in the

world for me in his position

um and i'm 10 years retired now so

yeah but my answer right now is no well

a prime uh that would have been it would

have been fun i would love to have

played against him yeah

okay this is all the time that we have

so uh thank you very much ladley it was

a very big pleasure and

we cannot thank you enough for joining

us thank you thank you for having me

hopefully you will join in enjoy your

time in israel and

maybe next time

tottenham will come here

hopefully for champions leagues

we promise to put to more a good

performance from the fans yeah yeah yeah

no no listen i know that the team are

really looking forward to the game

already since we've been out here the

reception that we've received has been

fantastic and uh

yeah they were hoping to put on a good

performance their last pre-season game

um so they wanna you know put on the

show play well

uh leading into the first game in the

premier league season yeah okay so thank

you very much again thank you everybody

and uh come on