Destiny Udogie has shared what Ivan Perisic told him after Cristian Romero gave him a ruthless welcome to Tottenham Hotspur training over the summer.
Speaking to The Athletic, Destiny Udogie admitted the Argentine defender went straight through the back of him with a heavy challenge in one of his first training sessions at the club.
Udogie finally linked up with the Tottenham squad over the summer after he was initially snapped up from Udinese in 2022.
The 20-year-old spent last season on loan at his former club and has returned to Spurs ready to make the step up to the Premier League.
It’s fair to say that Udogie has made quite the impact at Spurs already and has adjusted to life in England with ease. Of course, he was sent off in the 4-1 defeat to Chelsea earlier this month. But barring that one mistake, he’s been exceptional at left-back.
Indeed, former Tottenham scout Leonardo Gabbanini feels the youngster will become a ‘top player’ in the future.
After a promising start to life at Spurs, Udogie has been talking about his first training sessions and admitted Cristian Romero is ruthless at Hotspur Way.
Udogie says Romero is ruthless in training
Udogie reflected on one of his first training sessions at Spurs and admitted he was on the receiving end of a heavy tackle by Romero.
He said: “This guy, he has no mercy! I remember in one of my first training sessions I was playing inside as an inverted full-back, I controlled the ball and from my back ‘Boom!’ I said, ‘Wow’ and Ivan (Perisic) was like, ‘Yeah, welcome.’”
“‘OK, OK’,” he added. “But Cristian’s a good guy because the way he trains is how he plays. He’s a great defender. One of the best for sure.”
Udogie is not the first Spurs player to mention Romero’s antics in training, with Richarlison recently admitting he’s the toughest player to face at Hotspur Way.
The 25-year-old is not the type to shy away from a tackle in a game and it would appear he trains in exactly the same manner.
Romero has received criticism of late after picking up a needless red card against Chelsea earlier this month due to a reckless challenge on Enzo Fernandez.
But the Argentine’s aggressive style of defending is also a huge weapon for Spurs and Postecoglou won’t be in a hurry to remove that from his game.