Former Tottenham defender, Ricardo Rocha, has admitted that he found it so difficult to cope with his initial struggles in the Premier League that he and his wife were once reduced to tears.
Rocha had been an established star at Benfica for several years and a full Portugal international when he arrived at White Hart Lane in the January of 2017.
Big things were expected of the centre-half in North London but he looked well short of the required quality whenever he put on a Spurs shirt.
Before long, the centre-half saw himself having to watch from the sidelines and he was dropped out of the first-team picture after Martin Jol was replaced by Juande Ramos.
Rocha eventually went on to have a decent career in English football after a successful stint at Portsmouth.
The 41-year-old has now opened up on how difficult he found it to adapt to the Premier League when he arrived.
Speaking to Portuguese publication Record (as relayed by Sport Witness), Rocha said: “I remember being at home with my wife, the two of us crying.
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“It was a shock and English football is also very fast and very tough. I always say this to my friends: in Portugal, I was a tough and manly player, but in England, I was a boy!”
Spurs Web Opinion
Rocha never really had the pace and power required to be a top defender in the Premier League but he did always have a big heart and wore it on his sleeve. That is why I always had a soft spot for him when he was with us. I was happy to see him eventually go on to succeed with Pompey, even though it was in the lower leagues.
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