Gio still determined to be a Spurs success

Giovani Dos Santos is still eager to prove himself at Tottenham, admitting his recent injury was disappointing as he aimed to impress Harry Redknapp.

Gio sprained his ankle ligaments 15 minutes into the Carling Cup clash with Preston last month, having caught the eye of his manager in the previous round’s victory over Doncaster.

The injury has forced him to miss two weeks of Spurs season so far, as well as ruling him out of Mexico’s crucial World Cup Qualifiers.

Giovani told the Spurs Official Website, “I was fit and I was in good form, so it was disappointing to get injured.

“It was my opportunity to show the coach that I’m ready to play in the team.

“When I was on the floor I thought, ‘oh no it’s the same injury as last season’, because I had the same injury on the other ankle. I tried to continue, but it was impossible. I felt too much pain.

“My first thought was that I’d suffered bad luck, but two or three days afterwards, I just thought about getting back, getting fit and getting strong again. I’m still very young and when I come back I can do the same and show the coach I’m ready to play.”

Dos Santos will be buoyed by his managers words before the Preston match, where Redknapp said, “Gio’s fitter, leaner, has great ability, he can develop into a top player.”

Gio responded, “It’s great to hear that the coach is saying good things about me.

“I was doing well in the national team as well as in training here and then in the Carling Cup against Doncaster.

“Even in the Preston game I felt sharp and I hit the crossbar in the fifth minute.

“I think the coach knows I’m a good player and I want to do well for Tottenham. I came here to play, I love the fans and they’ve always supported me. I have everything here.”

Gio was also disappointed to miss out on Mexico’s final World Cup qualifiers that take place over the next week.

“It’s very frustrating not to be with my national team. I was playing very well for Mexico. The good thing is we only need to win one game and we are in the World Cup.

“I feel like ‘why am I injured now?’because I want to be playing at Spurs and I want to be in Mexico with my friends and with the team. But hopefully they will make it in the home game against El Salvador on Saturday. That would be perfect.”