Dejan Kulusevski speaks candidly to Sky Sports in an in-depth interview about the qualities Spurs are lacking and his outstanding form in a new role; watch Man City vs Tottenham on Sky Sports Premier League from 5pm on Saturday; kick-off 5.30pm
Saturday 23 November 2024 11:27, UK
Saturday’s clash with Manchester City looks a daunting prospect for Tottenham without the suspended Rodrigo Bentancur and with injuries to Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven. But Dejan Kulusevski has a different perspective on what lies ahead.
"My favourite game of the year," he smiles to Sky Sports. And no wonder. Having scored in all three of his visits to the Etihad Stadium and set up both goals in last month's home win in the Carabao Cup, few players can claim to have posed Pep Guardiola more problems.
"I have such good memories from there," adds Kulusevski. "I know they are the best. I know they have been winning the Champions League and the Premier League for many years.
"But it's where I come alive. I feel my body differently in those games. I feel super confident, knowing before the game that I will give a big performance. I just let God do his work. Even if there are five minutes left, I don't panic. I know it can happen in the last second.
"I really love to play the best teams."
His equaliser in the 90th minute of last season's 3-3 draw, during which he also assisted Heung-Min Son's opener, came after a run of three losses. A year on, Spurs return in similar circumstances, defeat to Ipswich having left players and manager under scrutiny.
The 2-1 reverse was Tottenham's fifth in 11 Premier League games this season. Speaking in a meeting room at the club's headquarters following his return from international duty with Sweden, Kulusevski does not shy away from addressing the issues as he sees them.
"I think there are a couple of factors and one is here inside the training ground," he says. "To be a champion, you have to be a champion every day. You have to give everything every day.
"I feel we lack a little bit of discipline in terms of that consistency. That's what is missing. The quality is there, the football is there. But you have to do it every day. You can't be happy because you win a game, two games, three games. You have to win every game.
"I think these are the steps that we have to take. We have the football, but we have to get more disciplined. Maybe someone else has a different opinion, but that is mine."
To be a champion, you have to be a champion every day. You have to give everything every day
Ange Postecoglou's devotion to his way of playing remains a subject of debate among supporters but it suits Kulusevski. The 24-year-old has excelled this season, even as others have struggled.
"It's been very nice to get to know him," he says of Postecoglou.
"I think he's a very good man and a very good coach. I have learned a lot from him and I agree with his playing style. That's the way I want to play, very aggressive and always the same.
"But of course, we have to improve. What we are doing is not enough. We can see progress in our football but we want to win something this year and we have to see results too.
"It's a challenge for us together - the manager, the players, everyone at the club - to find a way that works. A lot of things we do are perfect. Offensively, we are very good. But we have to defend a little bit better, especially conceding some easy goals from crosses.
"We have to improve a lot on that, but I think we can fix that side of our game and I am enjoying working with the manager.
"It's an honour for me to work with him."
The manager has helped get the best out of Kulusevski this season by moving him from the right wing into midfield, the position in which he began his career and one he relishes. Postecoglou says he is "more engaged" when he is "constantly involved". Kulusevski agrees.
"I've been playing as a winger for the last couple of years, but I've never been a winger, and now I've come back to where I started.
"When I was young, I always played in this role, especially at Atalanta in Italy. That's where I played as one of the three midfielders.
"I did really well as a winger for a couple of years and developed a lot of things in that position. But now I go back to my role."
It comes with freedom to roam - Kulusevski pops up everywhere, encouraged to drift - but also higher expectations.
"I think it was time for that," he explains. "It was time to take the next level, because I also matured mentally, so now I know that when I play in this position, I have to make a difference.
"I get a lot of freedom there. That's very important to me. But with freedom comes responsibility. So, now, in every game, I know I have to make the team score.
"A lot of it is instinctive. That's the way I have played all my life and it means every game can be different.
"Sometimes you will see me more on the right, sometimes you will see me more on the left. It's nothing planned, it's just about deciding what is best for the team at any second."
His impact has been profound, keeping James Maddison out of the side and placing him among the best performers in the division statistically. Kulusevski ranks top for chances created. He is in the top 10 for both touches in, and passes into, the opposition box.
He has excelled off the ball too, winning possession in the final third more times than any other player and throwing himself into the task of hustling and harrying opposition midfielders.
"I actually enjoy that side of it a lot," he smiles. "Every young player hates to defend. We only want to play with the ball. But I started to love defending when I was a kid.
"When I play in this position, I am usually up against a guy who plays as a No 6, and for me it's personal not to let him touch the ball. I find that challenge really fun.
"I learned it in Italy. When I was at Juventus, sometimes they played me just to mark the No 6. 'Don't let him touch the ball.' All of that. Physically, I can do it, and I enjoy it.
I try to kill you not only with the ball, but also without the ball
"I try to kill you not only with the ball, but also without the ball. In basketball, you have to do both parts. The best players are also the best defenders. It's not quite the same in football, but that is what I want to do. I want to do both parts of the game as well as possible."
Kulusevski has been helped in the process of readjusting to the off-the-ball demands of playing in midfield by his incredible stamina and running power. Since the 2019/20 season, only a handful of players have covered ground at a higher rate than his 12km per 90 minutes.
"I think part of it is mental," he explains. "But it is also genetics. When we do physical tests at the club, they always see that I have a very strong heart, so I imagine that helps me a lot.
"As soon as I get one minute of recovery time, it just fuels me up to go again. I just need to recover for a little bit, and then I have all my stamina back quite fast.
"Also, I work very hard, so I think it's a combination of those three things. In football, it's so important because the pitch is so big.
"If you can play for 90 minutes without being tired, it helps so much. It's a huge part of my game and a huge part of my life."
The plan for his move back into midfield was agreed with Postecoglou towards the end of last season. Kulusevski, as relentless in his pursuit of self-improvement as he is on the pitch, used the summer months to prepare himself, physically but also mentally.
"I started doing very different work in the gym and started training even harder than before," he explains. "I took a lot of strength from that training, but I also worked on the mental side.
"I matured. I started focusing on the things I need to focus on, all the time. Think positively. Don't see it as bigger than it is, because it's just football and it's the best thing in life.
"Pressure should not exist in football. It's just doing the thing that you love. Pressure is something for real life. It's for parents who have to send their kids away and things like that.
"So, I just try to focus on football as something fun and try to be the best I can every day, all the time looking for knowledge, asking questions and learning from great players I have played with."
The work done during the most recent off-season was extensive but not unusual for Kulusevski.
"I always have to do that, because I'm a football nerd and I love this sport," he says. "I feel like have this God-given talent and I have to do everything I can to make the most of it.
"I don't want to throw it away and I don't like not being a winner. I don't like not being the No 1. If I'm not being the No 1, then, in my head, I'm not doing enough.
"So, in the summer, yes, I'm having fun, but I'm always thinking about what has to change to make me better and stronger, to become more dangerous.
"Every year you learn new things and you get new experiences. I always try to see what I am lacking and where I want to be, and then I just train harder on what is missing from my game."
The arrival of his daughter, Leonie, in April has given him a new perspective as well as fresh motivation. "It has helped me a lot," he says. "When you have a daughter, your courage just goes up.
"You can't be thinking about stupid things anymore because you have a daughter who looks up to you and you want to be her superhero. I play every game for her. I want her to know that her father is the best, that her father is doing everything he can for her."
Becoming the best has long been Kulusevski's footballing ambition. Recent evidence suggests he is getting closer but he knows what is required to achieve the status he craves.
"Consistency," he says. "I think it's the hardest thing in football, every day, every game. But this season has been much better. I can't remember having a bad game.
"I have been much more consistent, much better, and I think the last step for me to be up there is to score goals in every game.
"I have to be more dangerous. I think I'm there already in terms of key passes. The passing has been there for the last few years. I just need that last step.
"I have to work a lot on my shooting, and on shooting a lot more, to try to be as dangerous as possible. I think, if I can, I have to double or triple my goal totals every year. After that, we can really talk about me being at the kind of level I want to be."
Spending time in Kulusevski's company, it is easy to see how he has emerged as a leader, captaining Sweden at the age of only 24 and becoming an example to his team-mates at Spurs.
"It's going really well," he says. "I have always been one of the youngest players but it's different now. I've never been captain before, but now, suddenly, I'm captaining my country.
"It's a huge responsibility and I'm taking much more responsibility here too. I have to keep learning myself, of course. But I'm up for being a leader, because I know I have to help."
Part of his leadership role at Spurs involves mentoring his young countryman Lucas Bergvall, an £8.5m signing from Djurgarden earlier this year who was wanted by a host of top clubs.
I am starting to see how I can affect people with my energy, with my words, and by pushing the right buttons
"It's fun for me to give him all the tools to get as good as possible," says Kulusevski. "I had great mentors in my life, like my father and all the players that took care of me. It's thanks to them that I learned so much. Now, I am one of them, trying to help young players.
"I'm starting to figure it out. I see how I can affect people with my energy, with my words, and by pushing the right buttons. My style is very, very positive. I don't care how it's going, I just want you to do your best and try to be free, without putting any doors in your way.
"I just try to help, always. I try never to be negative, or scream at them. I don't believe in things like that. I believe in making a player feel comfortable, and then pushing from there.
"Of course, this is only the beginning. I want to win more games and have more points. We all know we have to improve. I don't say I have all the answers, but together I think we can do good things."
It is a message worth heeding as Dejan Kulusevski, Manchester City's tormentor, aims to lead the way again for Spurs at the Etihad Stadium.
Watch Man City vs Tottenham on Sky Sports Premier League from 5pm on Saturday; kick-off 5.30pm
