Steven Caulker made a “big mistake” by leaving Tottenham Hotspur

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The 25-year-old defender left Tottenham Hotspur in 2013.

In an interview with The Guardian, Steven Caulker admits that he should not have left Tottenham Hotspur.

The towering centre-back had been on Tottenham’s books since a 16-year-old and initially looked a real talent after making his debut back in 2010.

The one-time England international, who scored on his international debut, made 17 Premier League appearances during the 2012-13 season under Andre Villas-Boas’s tenure, but joined Cardiff City the following summer.

Now at Queens Park Rangers, the 25-year-old, who started 12 Championship games last season, has struggled to fulfill the potential he showed at Spurs following unimpressive loans at Southampton and Liverpool in recent seasons.

And speaking to The Guardian, Caulker, who revealed issues with gambling and alcohol in the interview, claimed that he should have listened to Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy when he tried to make him clean up his act.

“He [Levy] just said: ‘The way you act is unbelievable. You either sort yourself out or go but I can assure you, if you leave, you’ll be going down, not up.’

“I was young, stupid. I took it as a challenge, a chance to prove him wrong. I was so immature.”

Caulker added returning to White Hart Lane as an opposition player and losing 4-0 made him realise that he should have stayed with the North London outfit.

“I ended up at QPR that summer, 2014, trying to hold it together, but the trigger there came in the second game when we were thrashed 4-0 at Tottenham.

“That feeling coming off the pitch at White Hart Lane, knowing we’d been embarrassed and that Levy was sitting up in the stand thinking: ‘I told you so’…

“There was no denying it any more. I’d made a big mistake leaving Spurs. I should have stayed and sorted myself out. I wanted the ground to swallow me up. It just pounded in my head: regret, regret, regret.”