Dejan Kulusevski has revealed that insight from Cristiano Ronaldo has been the catalyst for his recent upturn in form.
The winger has shined this season having featured in all ten of Tottenham’s games across all competitions.
His inspired form also saw him handed the captain’s armband for Sweden in last month’s Nation’s League clash with Azerbaijan.
And the playmaker was at it again on Monday night, providing an assist in his country’s 3-0 win over Estonia – his fourth consecutive match as skipper.
The 24-year-old offers a greater attacking threat than any other time during his Tottenham career and boasts a higher consistency in his game.
And that is in part due to some words of wisdom from former teammate and five-time Ballon d’Or winner Ronaldo.
The pair spent one season together at Juventus before the Portuguese made a return to Old Trafford but before his exit, Ronaldo spoke to the Swede on the subject of understanding your body.
Ronaldo’s longevity in football has been a result of keeping himself in optimal shape by looking after himself both on and off the pitch, something Kulusevski did not appreciate to its fullest, until now.
“I’m getting to know my body,” he told Fotbollskanalen. “When I was younger, I didn’t understand when Ronaldo told me: ‘You will get to know your body’. Because I didn’t know my body then. But now I’m starting to understand my strengths and weaknesses, how I can improve. So I feel like everything is getting easier.”
Ronaldo’s guidance now appears to be paying off with the Swede at the top of his game and Spurs on a good run of form before their defeat at Brighton last time out.
Ange Postecoglou’s side mustered up a run of five-straight victories but since suffering defeat in the north London derby on September 15.
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Pressed on his current form, Kulusevski said: “I have worked incredibly hard to be able to play at that level. I’m not shocked. I’ve just been waiting for it. Every match has felt good, but that one (in the recent 3-0 win at Manchester United) was perhaps extra good.”
Spurs are back in action on Saturday lunchtime when West Ham visit the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium hoping to get back to winning ways.
Kulusevski and his Spurs teammates came under fire for their collapse at Brighton earlier this month.
Having led 2-0 at half time, Tottenham slipped to a 3-2 defeat which saw Postecoglou’s side slip to ninth in the table.
