Tottenham Hotspur defender Ben Davies appeared on "The Tottenham Way," a podcast jointly launched by Tottenham Hotspur Official and Sports Illustrated. During the episode, he reflected on his career at Tottenham Hotspur and the club's Europa League success, discussed his friendships with Son Heung-min and Harry Kane, Kane's Ballon d'Or prospects, his international career with Wales, and his family life. This article is the third part of the exclusive interview.

Other parts of the exclusive interview

Ben Davies: Kane scored 72 goals in one season, I don't believe there's still debate about who should win the Ballon d'Or

Ben Davies: Finally felt relieved after winning the Europa League, the burden weighing on me has lifted

Absolutely. An amazing night. A shame for you that someone will have recorded it. But let's talk about some other important things in your life.

Yes. My family, my wife Emily, and my two sons, Ralph and Woody. It's very special. Looking at myself in that first photo, I was just a young man who had just arrived in London, and then seeing myself now, you realize how much my life has changed. It's truly remarkable, absolutely remarkable.

I met Emily after moving here, then we settled down and had two sons. They're wonderful. That's what life is all about.

Tottenham Hotspur must be a hugely important part of your children's lives, surely? Because as far as they know, you've always been a Tottenham Hotspur player.

They don't know all that yet, they don't know at all.

They don't know?

They're too young, far too young. One is 3 years old and the other is 1 year old.

Okay, fair enough.

They don't know. They see me and just think I'm like everyone else, going to work every day.

Ben, I mean, they wear Tottenham Hotspur shirts. So they're future Tottenham Hotspur players.

We hope so, we really do hope so. But that's how it is, isn't it? From now on, wherever life takes me, most of my career and life will always be connected to this club. When they grow up, they'll have to accept that. Hopefully we'll have two new Tottenham Hotspur fans.

I love that. I feel the same way. Maybe two Tottenham Hotspur players, who knows? Did Tottenham Hotspur help you grow up? Because you came here as a young man. Did Tottenham Hotspur tell you, "Okay, now you need to become a real man"?

Something like that, yeah, maybe. I'm not sure. Actually, it wasn't Tottenham Hotspur that made me grow up, but as I say, it's been a huge part of my life. Over the last 10 years, I've probably spent more time here than at home.

Yes. It's like family, isn't it?

Yes, yes, gradually it becomes like that. It becomes an important and special part of your life. So I'm very grateful for that. If I hadn't come to this club, none of these things would have happened. So it feels great living my life this way.

I have to say, these photos are brilliant and give us a picture of your life and career. Next, in a segment we call "Turning Points," we'll review your career. Take us back to the beginning. How you grew up and how you progressed through Swansea's academy? What was that experience like? Many people enter academies, but very few actually make it. Was there a specific moment during that time when you realized, "I actually have a chance to become a professional player"? Was there a moment, a coach, or something that really made you believe this dream would come true?

I think the academy system is very brutal. It's tough, really tough. Absolutely brutal. Of all the players in my age group who went through the entire Swansea academy system, there's only one other person besides me who's still playing professionally now.

So it's really difficult, really difficult. You see many people who have to rethink their lives. They give everything to football, but at 18, they're told, "Sorry, we don't need you anymore." That's an extremely difficult situation to face.

I always dreamed of becoming a professional player and always wanted to succeed. But the process can be very stressful and difficult. I never felt that I stood out so much from the others that I was guaranteed to become a professional. In fact, I was very lucky. I met some great coaches at the Swansea academy.

Tony Pennock was my youth team coach. He always believed in me and always gave me the chance to train with the senior team, to get close to that environment. He encouraged me to develop and always recommended me to others, giving me opportunities to try.

Just recently, I was outside chatting with a young player about football and competitive sports at a high level. My advice to him was: as a young player, when you move up to an older age group or play for the senior team, people sometimes put too much pressure on you, feeling that you need to become the best player right away.

But a better way to assess these young players might be: can they look like they belong there after stepping up a level? Can they hold their own among senior players? Every time I took a step up, that's what I felt. I always thought, "I can actually handle this." If you know what I mean, I could cope in any situation. I felt I could adapt to any environment.

I think that's helped me throughout my career. When I first joined Swansea's senior squad, I felt confident that I could hold my own there. And I was always striving for the next step: from training with the senior team every day, to being on the bench, to making my first appearance.

Then you have to keep working hard and stay sharp. You have to be very hungry for these opportunities.

Yes. That's actually a very grounded perspective. Because it's easy for someone to think, "Okay, I've made it, great, I'm going to be a superstar." But it seems like your attitude has always been very humble. Is that your natural personality? Are you inherently a calm person, or is there people around you who remind you, "Ben, don't rush, take it step by step"?

Yes. My parents have always been very good to me; they never let me think too far ahead or get ahead of myself. But I myself never wanted to be the type of player who plays one or two matches and then fades away.

First, I wanted the chance to play. Next, I hoped to play a full season. And beyond that, I hoped to make this my career. I think for almost everything I do, I approach it with that mindset. If I want to do something, I want to do it to the best of my ability. I want to truly succeed at it.

So at Swansea, that's roughly how it was. I was fortunate to get the chance, and at that time, I made the most of it seriously.

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