Hugo Lloris has praised the mentality of right-back Kyle Walker-Peters – and said that Tottenham is the perfect place for him to continue his development.
The 22-year-old, who’s first-team opportunities have been limited since he broke into senior setup back in 2017 and made just sevens starts in all competitions for Spurs last term.
But with Kieran Trippier first-choice right-back Kieran Trippier sealing a move to La Liga side Atletico Madrid last month and Serge Aurier having only recently recovered from a hand injury he suffered whilst on international duty with Ivory Coast, Walker-Peters is first in the pecking order and has started both of Spurs’ Premier League games so far, producing steady performances against Aston Villa and then Manchester City last Saturday.
Lloris echoed those thoughts and admitted that the England Under-21 defender is reaping the rewards from playing in high-pressure games last season, no more so than Tottenham’s must-win Champions League meeting with Barcelona in December, an evening where Walker Peters had to recover from an early mistake that led to Barca’s opening goal.
In an interview with the Evening Standard, the French World Cup winner said: “The credit belongs to the manager and the coaching staff. They’re used to giving opportunities to young players from the academy and they can take it or not.
“It’s up to the players. But Kyle is not a novice: for a few years now, he’s been working every day with us. He knows exactly the principles and the demands of the gaffer and now he just needs experience. He had a few big games last season like Barcelona away, he tried to use it in the best way to improve and be like he has done in the last few games.
“He has showed his quality in the last few seasons in training. We all know the difficulty of repeating that in games, but we’ve all seen his potential. Now the most difficult for him is ahead. When you get to this level you have to stick to this level and try to improve and he’s at the right place, with the manager, coaching staff and his team-mates. We try to look after players to show the right way. He’s got the right mentality.”
