Joe Rodon has admitted that he is learning a lot from playing with and being around a dressing room full of star players at Tottenham.
The centre-back made a massive step up in the summer leaving behind the home comforts of Swansea City to join one of the biggest clubs in the Premier League.
The 23-year-old has certainly had to wait patiently for his opportunities but when they have come his way, he has shown that he has all the attributes to succeed at this level.
The Welsh international was handed what was only his second Premier League start against Sheffield United on Sunday and looked solid and composed at the back.
Rodon, who earned Jose Mourinho’s praise after the game, insisted that he has learned a lot from the likes of Gareth Bale and Harry Kane.
He told Football.London: “It is a dressing room full of stars and for me to come in and sit with them and learn from these players every day is only going to improve me as a player and I am just grateful to be a part of it.
“Obviously I have spent more time with Gareth as part of the national team. They [Bale and Kane] are both top professionals, and everybody knows that. We can see that on the training ground and, as you see, out on the pitch.
MORE SPURS STORIES
“It is not just them two, it is everybody – and it starts with the gaffer trying to bring a winning mentality to us all. We all want to give our best and do the job for the team.
“Gareth coming into the dressing room is going to have that much more experiences and Harry is going to win plenty of things. You bring that together, and we all want to be winners.”
The central defender admitted that Kane inspires him by leading by example as the England captain does more than his share of dirty work.
When asked about the striker’s defensive contribution from set-pieces, Rodon said: “Of course. It goes back to what I said before, he is a top professional and a top player.
“We all want to give our all and seeing him do that is only going to give us more motivation to do that as well. It was a great overall team performance [against Sheffield United].”
When asked about the club’s chances of winning silverware this season, the young defender responded: “We will take each game as it comes. When the opportunity arises we will keep working as hard as possible and hopefully bring something to the table.”
Spurs Web Opinion
Not only does Rodon seem to possess the physical attributes and the temperament to become a top defender but he also comes across as an extremely humble lad in interviews. That will certainly hold him in good stead as he seems like a character who would absorb all the advice that he gets from the coaching staff as well as his teammates.
Keep up to date with all the latest Tottenham news and opinion by following SpursWeb’s Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts.
