Tottenham Hotspur defender Ben Davies may not have played much this season but he is still being praised for his leadership.
Tottenham’s transfer business has been a mixed bag over the last decade.
The money spent on players like Tanguy Ndombele, Giovani Lo Celso, Ryan Sessegnon, Davinson Sanchez and Steven Bergwijn didn’t quite bring rewards on the pitch.
Spurs have, of course, done plenty of great work too; even from last summer’s transfer window, the signings of Guglielmo Vicario and Micky van de Ven look like masterstrokes.
Yet if you go back to the summer of 2014, Tottenham secured an absolute bargain with the signing of Ben Davies.
Reports suggested that Tottenham paid around £8million to sign Davies from Swansea City with teammate Michel Vorm following him to Spurs.
Nearly 10 years on, Davies is still at Tottenham, racking up more than 300 appearances for the club.
Solid, dependable and not exactly one for the limelight, Davies has been the model professional at Tottenham and it’s no surprise that he has survived through many managers during his time at the club.
Joe Allen on Ben Davies
Davies has only started 11 Premier League games this season, taking on a squad role under Ange Postecoglou.
Destiny Udogie is the clear first-choice at left back whilst Davies has offered cover for Van de Ven as Tottenham’s left-sided centre back too.
Now heading off on international duty with Wales, Davies has been praised by teammate Joe Allen.
Davies and Allen both emerged at Swansea City and have racked up the caps together with the Welsh national team.
Speaking to BBC Sport, Allen suggested that Davies is a ‘real natural leader’ and has a truly ‘massive influence’ on the Wales squad.
“On top of all the other great traits, he’s a real natural leader,” said Allen. “He has a massive influence on that squad. That’s been vital in the past and still is now,” he added.
Davies turns 31 in April and should still have plenty left in the tank.
A stint as Wales captain is surely on the horizon as he pushes towards 100 caps for his county.
Postecoglou will appreciate what he has in Davies, even if it doesn’t always lead to major playing time in a Tottenham shirt.
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