I was so sure I needed to leave Tottenham that I didn’t even speak to Postecoglou, says Harry Winks

HARRY WINKS realised he had to quit Tottenham to earn his spurs as a footballer.

The England international joined the club’s academy aged just five.

Harry Winks knew he had to leave TottenhamGetty

PA

He did not even speak to new boss Ange Postecoglou[/caption]

Now, 22 years and more than 200 Spurs appearances later, Winks has finally cut the cord which connected him to the North London giants — choosing life in the Championship with Leicester instead.

In one of the surprise moves of the summer, the ten-cap midfielder turned his back on the Premier League to join the relegated Foxes.

The prospect of losing one of their own — let alone one called Harry — is enough to make most Spurs supporters’ blood run cold now.

Yet Winks was so certain his time was over, he did not even speak to new boss Ange Postecoglou to hear if he was in his plans when the Aussie took over in June.

The driving force behind his surprise £10million move was a desire to take centre stage and be the main man for Enzo Maresca’s side — rather than a gifted support act for Spurs.

Ahead of tomorrow’s Championship baptism of fire at home against Coventry, Winks, 27, said: “The most important thing for me was to feel wanted again.

“Leicester made it clear early on in the window that they wanted me as a key player.

“The manager personally asked for me and to feel wanted by a club of this magnitude was massive.

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“So the main driving force was feeling wanted by Enzo Maresca.

“I’d been at Tottenham since I was five. But over the last few years I wasn’t playing as much as I’d like to and the style of coaches we had was not ideal for me.

“There was no animosity with the club, I had some amazing years with Spurs, and I’m so grateful for my chance there. But it was time for both of us to move on.”

Winks did not see much point in sitting down with boss Postecoglou.

Getty

Winks joined Leicester City for £10million[/caption]

He said: “I never spoke to Ange. It was all done and decided before he came in. The general consensus between me and Spurs was, ‘Let’s get this done as soon as possible’.

“I wanted to start pre-season at the new place and get as fit as I could and meet everyone.

“The club felt the same way and everything happened pretty quick.”

Winks is not the only new arrival at Leicester this summer.

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Fresh from winning the Treble with Manchester City,  Maresca had barely finished puffing on his cigar when he seized the challenge of returning the Foxes to the Premier League at the first attempt.

For Winks,  working with Pep Guardiola’s respected No 2  felt like a perfect fit as the Italian sold him on his possession-based philosophy.

The  England man looks ideal for the Foxes’ deep-lying midfielder role, dictating the speed and angle of attack.

Winks said: “The way that the manager wants to play is exactly the kind of football I love.

“When he told me on the phone about his style and how he wants to progress with the team, it was just a no-brainer for me.

“That’s the style I had under Pochettino which I really enjoyed.

“People always remind me of my performance against Real Madrid in the Bernabeu and that was a great night for me. But there were many other games I did well in that maybe got overlooked. Now I hope to go to another level.”

Winks hinted some of Spurs’ soul had been sucked out of him — and others — during recent regimes,  regarded by fans as too negative.

He added: “All we want to do is play football with the ball and when you’re set up to not have the ball, it’s demoralising.

“That was part of the reason why I wanted to come here — because the way the manager wants to set up is an approach I can buy into.

“I was at Sampdoria on loan last year, and he was at Sampdoria as well in the past, and a couple of staff told me how good a guy he is.

“As soon as I spoke to him, my decision was made.  He’s coming in with fresh ideas and hopefully we get off to a good start.

“Of course, there was disappointment after relegation but it’s a new season, a new start for everyone.”

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