Sergio Reguilon now has a serious fight on his hands for the left wing-back spot in Antonio Conte's Tottenham team. Signed from Real Madrid in the summer of 2020, the Spain international immediately became a regular in the XI and caught the eye with his attacking displays.
Not having Ryan Sessegnon to compete with at the time as the ex-Fulham man was with German side Hoffenheim for the 2020/21 campaign, the 21-year-old is now back in N17 and had managed to work his way into Conte's team prior to picking up another hamstring issue. Both may be rivals for the left wing-back position in the Spurs side but Reguilon is doing all he can to pass on his experience to his teammate.
"I speak a lot with Ryan. He's a lovely guy," the Spaniard told Tottenham's official matchday programme. "I remember when I started in football, I had a teammate older than me. He helped me; he gave me so many tips. I loved that and so I try to do the same for Ryan.
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"We know that we have a lot of matches in a year and, if you want to fight for everything you need a brilliant squad. You have to have 20 ready players. Competition is the most important thing for me in football because, if you think in your mind that you will play every game, maybe you relax and that is not the way to be."
Missing out against Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium in February due to Covid, Sessegnon's fine performance in the 3-2 win saw Reguilon have to bide his time on the bench in the following games as a result. Although the former Real Madrid man has come back into the side since the England U21 international picked up an injury against Everton, he has admitted that it is still tough for him following his Covid bout.
"For me, it was difficult and still it is a little bit difficult because, after Covid, my feeling is that l didn't recover 100 per cent," he explained. "After COVID, when I came back, it was very tough for me. It is still a bit tough, but this is football, this is life, you have to be ready for everything."
One of a handful of players staying behind at Hotspur Way during the international break after missing out on a Spain call-up, Reguilon and his fellow teammates were worked extremely hard by Conte and his coaching staff. There was certainly no time to rest but plenty of double sessions for those staying back.
"They are tough, really tough. For the manager, you can rest after the end of the season, not during it," he admitted. "Our work in them depends on the day, but it is tactical, technical and in the gym - that's the worst for me. And it's also run, run, run, run. I think it is necessary for us though.
"We know that in the international break, the players that remained here in London needed to work hard, stay fit and for that, we did double sessions. Not only one either; we did a lot. Our team-mates were playing games, working hard for their national teams, but we had to be ready for when they came back so we could be at the same level of fitness."
