“When the captain says it, you do it” – Tottenham starlet reveals petrifying experience

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Judging from his performances on the pitch, it’s difficult to imagine that much fazes Tottenham youngster Harry Winks, but he’s revealed what did.

For a 21-year-old, he appears to take most of what life at Tottenham throws at him in his stride. From battling with top players for a place in the team under Mauricio Pochettino to starting at the Bernabeu against Real Madrid in the Champions League and making his England debut.

As he continues to impress and receive plenty of plaudits having stepped into midfield and now started the last three league games and two Champions League encounters, he’s revealed what left him “absolutely petrified”.

“It was brilliant [moving to first-team dressing room], it was such a great moment – until the lads told us we had to sing!” he told Sky Sports.

“That was a bit daunting, I was absolutely petrified. It went on for a while with me not wanting to do it, I told the lads I’d already done my initiation song.

“Then Hugo [Lloris] stepped up and said, ‘Harry you have to do it’. When the captain says it, you do it and I belted it out. I sang Follow Me by Uncle Kracker – not very well, though.”

Aside from that embarrassing experience, he hasn’t been left red-faced or made to look out of place on the pitch, as with injuries around him in the squad to the likes of Victor Wanyama and Mousa Dembele, he’s been given the opportunity to step in and make an impression.

He’s certainly done that as Pochettino is seemingly bringing through yet another top English talent following on from the likes of Harry Kane and Dele Alli, while Winks himself has recalled one player he used to watch train while he was in the youth teams at White Hart Lane, a player he lined up against last week.

“Luka Modric was one of my heroes. I saw him training when I was U15s and U16s but never actually got the chance to train with him. It was a little bit surreal lining up next to him in the tunnel,” he added.

As he notes himself in the interview, there are comparisons that can be drawn between the two players in terms of their style and physical attributes, and he’s done well already to even identify Modric as a player to emulate.

The Croatian midfielder is a class act and perhaps doesn’t get as much attention as he deserves, and based on the early signs, Winks is certainly on the right path to becoming an important figure for club and country too.

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