Winks: 'Why I looked up to Steven Gerrard as a child'

Harry Winks hopes to grace the turf once trodden by one of his footballing idols tonight.

The home-grown starlet, a keen Spurs fan, had a soft spot for Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard growing up.

Influential for club and country for an extended period, central midfielder Gerrard came up through the ranks of the club he supported – like Harry has done with us – and ultimately played some 690 games for the Reds before heading Stateside to join LA Galaxy.

Appreciative of the talents of a man who plays in a similar position, Harry would love to help us claim victory on Gerrard’s former territory in this evening’s EFL Cup fourth round tie as he takes another step on his own footballing journey.

“I’ve always looked up to Steven Gerrard since I was a kid,” said the 20-year-old. “He’s been a leader in his career, he’s stepped up when his team needs him and he’s technically top-class as well. I believe he’s a good example of an all-round midfielder that every young player could aspire to be like one day.

“I actually read his autobiography and in that he says he used to be quite short, then he had a bit of a growth spurt later on in his career – a bit like me. I’m not the tallest of players now but I used to be a lot shorter when I was a scholar, although I’m still waiting for my second spurt!

“I’m a massive Spurs fan and to play for your own club for as long as possible is obviously what you want to do. Hopefully I can also have a career to be proud of, but for Spurs.”

Coincidentally, Harry’s fledging career path has already passed through Liverpool. It was back on March 30, 2014, during our trip to Anfield that he first appeared in our matchday squad for a Premier League game and he made his top flight debut as a late substitute against the Reds in August of this year.

One thing eludes him, though – victory against the Merseysiders. That’s something he wants to put right tonight.

“We’re confident of winning every game,” added the youngster, who put in an impressive shift in our last match in this competition against Gillingham. “We’ve got a great squad, strength in depth, everyone’s fighting for a place and whoever plays, we’re going to aim to win the game. We’re very capable of doing so.”