Kyle Walker-Peters is glad he has been able to prove a few of his doubters wrong since the defender left Tottenham Hotspur for Southampton, via quotes by the Evening Standard.
Jose Mourinho sacrificed the long-term Spurs man in 2020 whilst negotiating Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg’s switch from St Mary’s to north London. Walker-Peters had spent the latter half of the 2019/20 campaign on the south coast on loan, and sealed a £12m permanent move.
The 24-year-old was never able to establish himself as the first-choice in his position while at Spurs. He enjoyed his most minutes in a single Premier League campaign in ‘18/19 with 374 across six games. He only made three outings in 2017/18 and ‘19/20 for 188 and 242.
Walker-Peters almost instantly established himself at Southampton after arriving on loan to secure a permanent exit from Tottenham, though. The London-born dynamo has also shown his versatility this term with frequent minutes at left-back, as well as on the right.
His performances under Ralph Hasenhuttl have also secured Walker-Peters a maiden call-up to the senior England side under Gareth Southgate. The Saints star is a late inclusion in the Three Lions squad for friendlies with Switzerland and Ivory Coast after a few withdrew.
Kyle Walker-Peters glad to ‘prove a point’ at Southampton after Tottenham exit
Walker-Peters has now opened up on his decision to leave Tottenham for Southampton in a permanent transfer in 2020. He feels the Saints showed they trusted what the full-back could achieve after his loan, and now believes he has shown his Spurs doubters it, as well.
“I wanted to prove a point,” Walker-Peters said. “I wanted to go to Southampton because I knew they believed in me, I wanted to play regular football and maybe I’ve proved a few people wrong, which is always nice.”
While Walker-Peters has continued to rise with Southampton, Tottenham remained in the hunt for a new right-back. Mourinho used the cash from his exit to sign Matt Doherty from Wolves for £15m. While Nuno Espirito Santo a year later paid £26m to sign Emerson Royal.
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