Spurs stories | Nihal Arthanayake - Harlow, Hoddle and tears after that ‘Hollywood’ night in Holland...

Nihal Arthanayake and Spurs would have been a likely match anyway - but having such a Hoddle influence around him as a schoolboy no doubt sealed the deal for the popular presenter and author.

That support of our great club has been a constant in Nihal’s life throughout his journey from Hip Hop musician and writer into music promotion - including working for Elton John - and radio, where he initially joined Radio 1 on the station’s Asian Beats show before moving to 5 Live and the Afternoon Edition, before hosting his own lunchtime programme for eight years, departing earlier this year. He’s also now an author, his first book, Let’s Talk, published in 2022.

He spoke to Andy Greeves for our In The Spotlight feature in our Official Matchday Programme...

How did you come to be a Spurs supporter?

Nihal: “It’s a story I’ve told many a time but basically Glenn Hoddle went to my school – Burnt Mill in Harlow. I started there in 1982 when we had just won back-to-back FA Cups with Glenn in the team. Glenn’s younger brother Carl was still at school at that time, so there was a ‘Hoddle’ walking past you in the corridor! Harlow is a real Spurs stronghold…it has even got its own official Spurs store! The area is Tottenham through and through and so was our school. So, it was highly unlikely I could have supported anyone else!”

The genius of Glenn Hoddle...

We know Glenn is your favourite all-time Spurs player but who else is up there for you?

Nihal: “I really love Ledley King. Not only as a player, but he has gone on to be a great ambassador for the club too. When you think back to all the years, he wasn’t able to train but put in the performances that he did…that makes him even more incredible. His tenacity and the passion he has for the club is something all supporters appreciate. (Dimitar) Berbatov was fantastic. He was the archetypal Spurs player in terms of the elegance he played with, what he could do with the ball. He made everything look effortless. And how can you talk about favourite Spurs players without mentioning Heung-Min Son. I’ve had the pleasure of meeting him and he’s such a lovely, down-to-earth, humble guy. You can absolutely see why Ange made him the captain because you’d always want to play for him, do your best for him. And what a player he is. Steve Perryman, the man who played most matches for us. He has to get a mention. So many players from the early Spurs team, when I fell in love with the club, are naturally very special to me... Steve Archibald, Ricky Villa, Ossie Ardiles, Garth Crooks. And the team Poch had. It was just wonderful. Most weekends, it wasn’t a case of whether or not we were going to win, but how many goals we would win by. There was the magical final season at White Hart Lane (in 2016/17), going unbeaten there for an entire season. The names from that team roll off the tongue... Lloris, Rose, Alderweireld, Vertonghen, Walker, Dier, Eriksen, Dele Alli, Harry Kane and Sonny of course. The list goes on and the problem with this kind of question is, you will always forget to name other players you really should have mentioned!”

What have been your highlights supporting Spurs over the years?

Nihal: “It has to be the Champions League semi-final against Ajax because that was proper ‘Hollywood’ stuff. I started crying after that match. I can’t think of a time when football made me so happy. Sadly, the final was a bit of a damp squib. But to get there in the way we did was something completely different.”

You recently hosted our Fans’ Forum. What was that experience like?

Nihal: “I have been fortunate to host the Fans’ Forum for Spurs on a number of occasions. I’ve interviewed a fair few people over the years as you know, but the Fans’ Forum is the most nerve-racking thing that I have done. Because it’s my club… it just matters to me so much. Hundreds of thousands of Spurs fans will watch that forum on the internet. You have to try to put that to the back of your mind! The Forum recently was my fourth. I also hosted the press conference for the opening of the new stadium, and I used to have a column in the old Hotspur magazine back in the day. All these things mean so much, because, ultimately, you’re a supporter of the club first and foremost.”

What are your hopes for this season?

Nihal: “The key thing is keeping positive. We’re trying to get in that top four mix this season, challenge for a trophy. There will be twists and turns but why shouldn’t we achieve what we’ve set out to achieve? I’m very excited about Europe. It’s great for us to be back in Europe again. We’ve got some mouthwatering matches in the Europa League. Roma at home, going to Galatasaray, Rangers etc. It would be nice to be playing Champions League football, but we’re not quite there yet. It’s a case of trusting the process. But the matches in the Europa League, many of them feel like Champions League ties anyway in terms of the size of clubs we’re going up against.”