Football
Dan Kilpatrick, Tottenham Correspondent 7y

Spurs' Kieran Trippier targets Kyle Walker's World Cup spot for England

ORLANDO -- Kieran Trippier says he is determined to fill the hole left by Kyle Walker at Tottenham and he has targeted his former teammate's England place at the 2018 World Cup.

Right-back Walker left Spurs for Manchester City for a deal that could reach £50 million, a record for an English player, leaving his former understudy on centre stage.

Trippier has started just 11 league games in two years since joining Spurs for £3.5m from Burnley, but he finished last season ahead of Walker, starting the FA Cup semifinal defeat to Chelsea and the games against Arsenal and Manchester United.

The 26-year-old -- who left City in 2012 without making an appearance -- was rewarded with an England cap last month and he says he is ready to fill Walker's spot for club and country.

Asked if this is the most excited he has been for a new season, Trippier said: "Yes, for sure. Obviously with my England debut and Walks moving on, it's opened the door. When these opportunities come along, you've got to grab them.

"When I came here, I knew it would be difficult because Walks was ahead of me but I always believed I could start for Tottenham. It's been a difficult two years waiting patiently but Walks has gone to City now and I will take my opportunity.

"I haven't moaned about it, I've just kept working hard in training and I know with the players I am playing with, I will only get better. We were very close -- I've texted Walks to wish him luck -- but it is a good opportunity for me to work hard in preseason, impress the manager as much as I can and hopefully get more games.

"I want to put it in his mind that I am ready to step up and be the number one. I just need to keep working hard on the training field, keep putting the performances in, just so he knows I am ready.

Trippier, who recently signed a new five-year deal at Spurs, continued: "I always believed I could play at the highest level.

"Tottenham is a great club. When they came in for me, I knew Walks was here but it didn't faze me or bother me. I knew his quality and I knew how tough it would be and I knew I'd have to be patient. Two years later, I'm still here.

"We are very close, been together with England since Under-19s. He has his move, I am happy for him and now it's my opportunity to keep that spot.

"We've been learning off each other since I came here. He was the starting right-back so we had loads of discussions about each other's qualities. I think we bounced off each other. There was no bitterness there, whoever was playing. People, fans don't see that. We really got on and I learned a lot from him and hopefully he can kick on now."

From being competitors at club level, Walker and Trippier are now rivals to be England's right-back and, reflecting on his international debut in the 3-2 friendly defeat to France in Paris, Trippier said: "Obviously it was one of the proudest moments of my life, putting on that England shirt.

"My dream is always to play for England. Before I came to Tottenham, I dreamed of playing for England. I always wanted to try to do it, I've tried and tried. I'm at the best club for me now and every time I pull the shirt on I want to do my best for Tottenham and hopefully my performances are good enough to get picked for England. There's the World Cup next year..."

In April, Trippier laughed off suggestions he could play for England but asked if a spot on the plane to next summer's World Cup in Russia was now a target, he said: "Yes, of course it is. I just need to do well for Tottenham.

"Every game I play I need to put a performance in because you've got Walks at City, [Nathaniel] Clyne at Liverpool, so there's tough competition. I just need to focus on myself and believe in myself, which I do," continued Trippier, who was speaking in Florida following a Q&A with young people from the Special Olympics.

"I don't think it's changed me one little bit. It's just made me more hungry. Obviously I've had a taste of it, meeting all the boys and the manager. It was exciting times for me and my family and I want more of it.

"I've got to thank the manager [Mauricio Pochettino]. I've learned a lot from the manager and the players since coming here. He's taught me a lot defensively and offensively.

"When I was at Burnley I put a lot more crosses in, but some of them were just crossing. Now I can pick and choose my moments," added Trippier, who finished last season with five assists in the Premier League -- the same number as Walker.

"Of course, you can always work on your defensive side, which I can do. I'll be honest about that.

"But he's changed me as a person. I feel more mature and my attacking most of all has helped me out. Just like playing out, which I'd never really done before at Burnley. I'm more confident on the ball. If you give it away he's not bothered as long as you try things. Playing from the back, attacking, my all round game has improved and I thank him for that. He's one of the best managers in the world."

Spurs are still hopeful of buying a replacement for Walker -- although Pochettino believes Porto's Ricardo Pereira is too expensive -- but Trippier believes he already has competition in Kyle Walker-Peters, the 20-year-old who won the Under-20 World Cup with England this summer.

"It's the manager's decision if they decide to bring in another right-back in but I am not going to worry too much about that. I know what I can do," Trippier said. "I got more games towards the end of last season and I think I did well. I need to keep working hard every day and if the manager picks me he knows I will do well for the team.

"You can't drop your levels at this club. Even in training you need to keep high standards because the manager demands the highest standard every single day. My standards won't be dropping because Walks is gone. I'll be exactly the same, hungry to play, to start every week and do well.

"Now I've got Kyle Walker-Peters [as competition], who is a very good player. He is a very good, hungry right-back. He's just won the World Cup. "I always give my best regardless of whether there's somebody there or not to make sure I'm number one."

Asked about his new contract, Trippier said: "It's a proud moment. It's a massive club with a massive future ahead, a new stadium. Playing with the players I do every day, training with the manager, who is an unbelievable manager. When I wasn't even playing, he's unbelievable."

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