Emerson Royal has told football.london that he is trying to improve every day amid criticism from Tottenham fans and that when things go wrong it is "not for lack of will and dedication".
The Brazilian, who turns 24 on Saturday, has faced a tough time in recent weeks, before and after the World Cup break. The Spurs fans have grown frustrated with his lack of attacking output, coupled with the lack of game time for summer signing Djed Spence, and that has bubbled over into matches and social media abuse.
Emerson has been booed by a small section of fans when coming on ahead of Spence on a couple of occasions, but the worst instance was a huge booming cheer from all sides of the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in November when he was replaced by Matt Doherty after 57 minutes in the match against Leeds.
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It was an uncomfortable moment to watch and Conte and his coaching staff consoled the Brazilian as he walked off into the technical area.
Emerson has also been abused on social media, which led to him in November switching off the ability for people he does not follow on Instagram to reply to his regular posts. On Twitter, he has not posted anything since the early weeks of the season - his last tweet a simple post saying "My club" with a blue heart over a photograph of him training.
When football.london asked the Brazilian about the criticism from the fans, he admitted that it was outside of his control and that all he could do was try to work hard to continue to improve.
"It's not up to me to say whether the crowd's opinion is fair or not. There are people who pay [to watch matches], but there are many people in favour," he said. "I do not seek to see these questions [about me]. I prefer to focus on doing my best for the club.
"I prefer to dedicate myself 100% to what I can do. Sometimes things go well, sometimes they don't, but it is not for lack of will and dedication."
He added: "I never stopped making an effort, trying to help my team-mates and managing to sustain the happiness I have and put it on the field. I always try to do that.
"I understand all the manifestations of the fans. It is their role together, but you must understand about the player, his moment, will and repertoire. I'm trying to improve every day and live up to all the trust it motivates. I support myself a lot in the messages of affection I have received."
football.london understands there is interest from clubs in both Spain and Italy about signing Emerson in a loan-to-buy deal during the January transfer window, but that interest is yet to materialise into a concrete offer to Tottenham.
The player is not believed to be pushing for a move away from north London having held talks with Antonio Conte about his future last summer when Atletico Madrid registered an interest in taking him back to Spain. Those around the Brazilian suggest there is no desire from the player to engage in negotiating a move away from Tottenham in the January transfer window despite long-standing interest from a number of clubs.
Royal arrived at Spurs in the summer of 2021 in a £25.8million deal from Barcelona after a successful spell at Real Betis, who originally joint-owned his registration with the Catalan club. Tottenham's managing director of football Fabio Paratici brought the Brazilian in as a new right-back to fit then head coach Nuno Espirito Santo's back four.
However, with the arrival of Conte so Emerson had to adapt to a wing-back role that was not something he was as accustomed to. The Brazil international has high fitness levels and is a solid defender and the incoming Italian stuck with him ahead of the out of favour Matt Doherty.
Attacking is not Emerson's forte, as shown by his tally of one goal and two assists in 62 matches since joining Tottenham, but when called upon to do a defensive job he has impressed in some of the team's biggest matches, most notably in the victory at Manchester City last season and the 1-1 draw at Anfield against Liverpool.
That is why Conte has always trusted the Brazilian to do a job and football.london understands that the Italian appreciates the fact that Emerson is a positive, driven character in the dressing room and popular among the squad.
However, within Conte's system, much depends on the creative and attacking ability of the wing-backs on either side and also how they combine in getting on the end of the other's crosses. Ivan Perisic, who was converted to play in the system by the Italian at Inter, has already racked up eight assists in his first 24 matches since arriving at Spurs on a free transfer last summer.
Emerson's lack of attacking output saw him ousted as Conte's first choice right wing-back last season by Doherty until the Irishman suffered a season-ending knee injury. That resulted in the Brazilian returning to the line-up to help Spurs finish in the top four and qualify for Champions League football.
The player also spent around £800,000 on trying to improve his game with a hyperbaric oxygen chamber to recover quickly after games, working with a neuroscientist to help cope with the psychological pressures of the game and even having scouting reports made on former Conte wing-backs like Achraf Hakimi in order to understand better what was needed of him.
This season, with Doherty still trying to get match sharp after his rehabilitation and young summer signing Djed Spence not yet trusted by Conte, Emerson started almost all of Spurs' matches in the Premier League and Champions League before the World Cup.
With just one assist from his 21 matches in this campaign, football.london asked Conte earlier in the season whether he had worked with Emerson on improving his attacking game.
"In my opinion Emerson had a good start in this season and he can play in this position. I'm happy with him. He could have scored three goals in the last game. He has improved a lot since last season. Don't forget Emerson played every game in this period, for sure now he can be a bit tired," said the Spurs boss.
"As a full-back you can be fatigued because you become a striker when you are going to attack and you have to become a defender when we have to defend, but I'm really happy about Emerson's performance because you have to think, compare last season and he's made a good improvement. He has to continue to work to do it."
Spurs were willing to entertain offers for the player in the summer but there was a reluctance from the happy and settled Emerson to move on if any had been accepted, prompting the talks with Conte, and the player's position has not shifted this month. That is despite Doherty having currently usurped him in the pecking order again, along with the backlash against him from some of the fanbase.
Tottenham are believed to still be willing to consider approaches from clubs interested in Emerson as they eye up a potential new right wing-back to better fit Conte, with Sporting's Pedro Porro a player they have been tracking for some time.
To sign a new right wing-back however would require one if not two of Conte's current options to head out of the club during the same window. Tottenham are yet to decide whether Spence will be sent out on loan just four months after arriving in a deal that could eventually be worth £20million to Middlesbrough.
There is interest in the 22-year-old from Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen and three Premier League clubs with no desire from Spurs or the player to loan him back to the Championship.
When it comes to Emerson Royal, there certainly seems to be no desire from the player to leave the north London club any time soon.
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