Lucas Moura has lifted the lid on the inspirational speech he delivered to the Under-21s at Tottenham after they were relegated from Premier League 2.
Lucas Moura has turned out for the Under-21s in four matches this season, scoring three times and the winger is even said to have travelled with the squad to Blackburn for one game.
The academy side were relegated from Premier League 2 on goal difference despite winning their final league game of the season against West Ham, with the Brazilian playing the full 90 minutes of the encounter.
It has now emerged that Moura delivered a spontaneous speech to the youngsters at Spurs in the dressing room after the relegation was confirmed, with Football.London describing it as ‘one of the most powerful speeches those academy players would have ever heard’.
The 30-year-old allegedly spoke to the young players about his love for Spurs and urged them to make the most of their opportunity with the club.
When asked about the speech, Moura told Tottenham’s Matchday Programme (as relayed by Football.London): “I grew up as a man here at Spurs – I had my second son, I made more friends and of course, the experience to play with the U21s was good because it reminded me of the time that I was in Sao Paulo and I played with academy players.
MORE SPURS STORIES
“Playing with them and trying to help them was a good experience for me, I enjoyed it a lot. I love football, this is my passion – it doesn’t matter the game, it doesn’t matter the competition, the most important thing for me is to enjoy the game and to see the kids play.
“I could feel that they were a bit excited to play with me, so it was very good for me and it helped me a lot as well. I’m 30 years old now and I’ve learned a lot of things here. I am a better person now, a father, a husband and I’ve lived great moments here at Spurs. I’m so grateful for this.”
Moura’s time at the North London club has certainly not had a fairytale ending, with the team having a poor season and the Brazilian himself being sidelined with injuries for much of the campaign.
However, the former Paris Saint-Germain man insisted that he will look back on his time at the club with fondness despite the way things have unfolded over recent months.
He added: “In football and in life, we have good and bad moments — the most important thing is to be strong mentally, This was not my best season because I had a few problems with injuries and I couldn’t help the team as I wanted.
“The last two games that I played of course were difficult. I was so excited to play again and to help the team, and I was so eager to show this, to play with a lot of desire that I got a red card against Everton. The feeling was very, very bad. Terrible.
“Then against Liverpool, I made a mistake. I didn’t want to clear the ball, I wanted to make a pass but it was a bad decision and it was very difficult again. But it’s football and it didn’t affect the other good moments that I’ve had here, I have much more to celebrate than to be sad about.”
Spurs Web Opinion
Most experienced stars would not have taken kindly to playing with the Under-21s and would have perhaps merely gone through the motions but it is clear that Moura went above and beyond to help the youngsters and really took an interest in their futures.
Spurs fans will undoubtedly remember the 30-year-old with a lot of fondness and I am sure he will always be welcome at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Keep up to date with all the latest Tottenham news and opinion by following SpursWeb’s Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts.
