Five minutes with... Michael Dawson

Michael Dawson, 38, played 324 times for us between 2005-2014, often captaining the team, winning the League Cup in 2008 and helping us qualify for the Champions League in 2010/11, where we went on to reach the quarter-finals. A youth product of Nottingham Forest, he also had a spell at Hull City before ending his career back at the City Ground. Today, he’s a Club Ambassador and pundit for Sky Sports, appearing on their flagship Soccer Saturday programme.

How are you today?

Daws: “I’m very good, thanks!”

The season turned out well, didn’t it?

Daws: “I was on Sky Sports on the final day, and I couldn’t see any other outcome than a Spurs win at Norwich, especially with the form we’d been in. Thankfully, it was as comfortable as I thought and hoped it would be. It's fantastic to see the Club back in the Champions League.”

How did it feel to make the Champions League in 2010?

Daws: “It was a massive achievement, it really was, especially considering where we’d been a couple of seasons earlier. Harry Redknapp came in and took us into the top four, and for me and a number of players it was our first time in the Champions League. That’s what we were striving for. From beating City on that incredible night at the Etihad (May, 2010), we made it into the group stage and then to the quarter-finals. It was a fantastic experience for the players and fans.”

That run included you leading team out in the San Siro...

Daws: “It was one of the biggest and best experiences in my Spurs career. We went there as underdogs, last 16, AC Milan packed with superstars, and that’s what the competition is all about. We got through that tie and then we played Real Madrid. Incredible, incredible experiences. Those are the nights you look back on.”

What is your earliest Spurs memory?

Daws: “My first memory, just after I’d signed, was watching the team play Portsmouth at White Hart Lane, and watching Ledley King live. That was my first time at the Lane. I remember thinking, ‘wow, how am I going to play alongside him?’ as I watched Ledley. What a player. We had a great partnership together and many special days in that white shirt.”

What is your most treasured Spurs possession?

Daws: “It has to be my 2008 League Cup winners’ medal, alongside every memory I made here.”

What do Spurs mean to you?

Daws: “Everything, really. The Club gave me the chance to fulfil every dream I had as a footballer. I’ll be forever grateful for Spurs, I really will. Forest is where it all started for me as a kid, I had the experience of playing in the Premier League, captained the Club, played in semi-finals and finals at Wembley, the Champions League... so, yes, I’ll be forever grateful for Spurs for allowing me to fulfil every schoolboy’s dream.”

Finally, talk us through a typical day...

Daws: “I’ll be on the school run or the nursery run, I’ll be going one way and my wife the other, depending on who I drop off. On a Friday during the season, I’ll do a lot of preparation work for Soccer Saturday. During the week, I’ll try to enjoy myself, bit of gym, maybe midweek games, maybe coming down to Spurs to do my ambassadorial work, which I’ve loved, having that real connection with the fans. It varies day to day, but it always includes dropping the kids off and picking them up. It’s a bit different from playing - and I wouldn’t change it for the world.”