Tottenham legend Toby Alderweireld returned to the club's training ground as a guest on the podcast The Hotspur Way, a collaboration between Tottenham and Sports Illustrated. In the interview, he discussed life after retirement, his experiences at Antwerp, and reflected on his career at Tottenham. This is part three of the exclusive interview.

That's an interesting way to put it.

That's how I think. Of course, you have to be confident. But before every match, I never really had that kind of confidence where I thought, "I'm definitely going to breeze through this." It's the opposite—that feeling is what made me strong, because I'll always be alert.

I'd think: "I need to play my best. He could beat me, he could beat me, he could beat me." So I prepare myself. I know it sounds strange, but it works for me.

I'm still trying to understand your mindset. So you go into some matches almost with a bit of fear?

When I faced those top strikers, I'd think: "Man, he's much stronger than me, I could..." But when facing any one-on-one challenge, I'm ready. So that's how I think. I know it's strange.

But as long as it works for you. Because there are also some stars who say: "Let those who hate me come." Because those voices drive them. So your mindset seems a bit different, doesn't it?

But that actually works for me too. I'd also think: "I'll prove them wrong." "You think I'm not good enough? Well, just wait and see."

I see. So it's actually a combination of both mindsets.

Exactly, it's a combination of the two. But there's absolutely no arrogance. I could never think before a match: "Oh, this match today will be easy."

Never. If I thought that, even for a moment, I'd almost certainly make a mistake.

You really understand yourself well. This professional player mentality is very interesting.

However, as a center-back, your mentality is fundamentally different from a striker's. You can play brilliantly for 89 minutes, but make one mistake, and your entire performance is ruined.

And then all the blame falls on you, right?

Exactly. Goalkeepers have it even worse, actually. (laughs) But it's the same for center-backs. Especially when we played for Tottenham, in many situations it was almost always one-on-one defending.

So you have to stay completely focused. There's absolutely no room for arrogance.

Then you left Ajax. That was clearly an environment that shaped your mentality, and then you came to Atletico Madrid, coached by Simeone. At that time, Simeone was really elevating Atletico Madrid to a different level. I used to work at Real Madrid, so I remember there was a time when Atletico Madrid was almost a guaranteed three points for Real Madrid. But when you joined, it was a completely different era.

That's true. It had a huge impact on my mindset as well. Because at Ajax, you're always in control of the ball. You're the strongest team in the league, and there's a certain arrogance to that.

But when I came to Atletico Madrid, wow, it was completely the opposite. It was truly different.

For me, it was like going from a boy to a man. Especially in terms of defense.

I'm really grateful I got to learn from Simeone during that time. We won the league title and reached the Champions League final, but we lost in the end.

I could have stayed there completely. But I learned so much there, and I thought: "I still want to prove myself more, I still want to achieve more." What I really learned from Simeone was the purest form of defending. I genuinely love defending. Whether it's winning headers or making a tackle, that feeling makes me really happy. Sometimes people think only last-ditch saves on the goal line excite defenders.

But no. Even a very basic header, as long as you win the ball, that feeling is incredible. That's where I truly fell in love with the art of defending.

Right. But people might ask: "Why did you only stay there one year?"

First, I won the league title. Second, I always had a dream of playing in the Premier League.

You might think: "There will be more opportunities in the future." But your career can change very quickly. Then the Southampton opportunity came up.

And I thought: "Don't wait any longer. I believe in myself, go to the Premier League, because I want to prove how good I really am."

So you proved a lot at Atletico Madrid. And you just mentioned you fell in love with defending. Under Simeone at Atletico Madrid, there's an inherent warrior spirit. Then you came to Southampton. How was the team culture there different when you arrived in the Premier League? Was it a culture shock for you? What did you learn in your first season?

First, Koeman called me.

He said: "Listen, Toby, I really want you."

Of course, he also had that Dutch football connection from Ajax. So I thought: "I can really feel his trust, so let's go."

I think I signed on the final day of the transfer window. Two days later, I played against Newcastle United.

We won 4-0, and it was one of the best matches I've ever played in my career. From the very first minute I arrived in the Premier League, I loved it. The feeling was incredible, like a dream come true. Then we went on to win many matches.

I think Southampton that season also had one of the best seasons in the club's history. I remember around Christmas we were even top of the league at one point. So it was really unbelievable.

And joining Southampton at that time wasn't an easy decision. The season before, Pochettino had managed there. They had a very good season, so many players left afterwards.

Everyone thought: "Oh, Southampton's done now."

Yes, everyone thought they'd be relegated.

But I thought at that time: "I don't care."

"Let me go there. I really want to prove myself, just give me a chance."

In the end, we had an incredible season. After that, I made another incredible transfer, joining Tottenham.

Speaking of which. When you joined Southampton, did you get other offers from Premier League clubs at that time? Or was your connection with Koeman the most important factor?

There was also Sunderland at the time. But the thing was, Atletico Madrid wanted me to leave on loan at that time, as they wanted to bring me back later. That's what I understood back then. But after Koeman called me, I immediately said: "I want to go there, because I really want playing time." I knew no manager could guarantee playing time.

If you don't perform well, you'll be dropped. But at least I needed a chance. And I felt that trust from Koeman. So I went to Southampton.

Related articles:

Toby: I Won't Consider Coaching, I Prefer Experiencing Life Outside of Football Now

Toby: Before Matches, I Always Had Some Fear of My Opponents, Which Really Helped Me Perform My Best

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