Facing Arsenal is the "perfect" first game for interim Tottenham manager Igor Tudor, says former player William Troost-Ekong.
The former Juventus and Udinese manager has agreed a contract until the end of the season to replace the sacked Thomas Frank, with the sole aim of guiding the team away from the threat of relegation.
Troost-Ekong twice played under Tudor at Udinese, and says the manager's front-foot attacking tactics will be in stark contrast to Frank's reserved approach, and backed his former boss to be a success in the Premier League as he will have the squad “running through brick walls” for him.
"We had him two times at Udinese,” Troost-Ekong told talkSPORT. “He's a manager who likes to play 3-5-2, or a variation of it, of course, attacking football, a high back line, tries to press high, can be quite direct.
The north London Derby is the perfect game to start, he's definitely not intimidated by anything like that
"He's definitely a personality, so if they need someone to shake up the place and get it going, then he's definitely the right person for it. The north London Derby is the perfect game to start. He's definitely also someone who's not intimidated by anything like that. So, a big personality, and he's going to get everyone trying to run through a brick wall.
"He was very focused on instilling confidence back in the team. He came in at moments when we weren't doing too well, so for Spurs, he will work a lot with the back line. There was a lot of tactical work that we did, switching it up to 3-5-2, so that will be the first thing, and also the high pressing and more exciting football.
"The fans need something to get out of their seats again [and] he's definitely the person for that. You will probably see a lot of goals, but there could be some conceded as well, because of that quite high-risk high line. That will probably be his biggest difference, I would say, getting everyone to run forward as much as they can."
It is the first experience of English football for Tudor, a former centre-back who has also managed in France, with Marseille, and Turkish giants Galatasaray, but his strong personality is expected to serve him well in his new surroundings.
"[Lack of Premier League experience] is probably is a factor," Troost-Ekong continued. "But he's also managed some great clubs, like Galatasaray, Juventus Marseille, and as a player, he's very experienced as well.
"It wouldn't be that he's out of his depth completely, but it's a big change. The Premier League is a very scrutinised league, a lot to talk about, always, so that part might be slightly different, and maybe working with a big group of talented players, but I wouldn't think that would be too dissimilar to then maybe his job at Juventus before."
Troost-Ekong was at Spurs during the early years of his career but failed to earn a senior debut before spending time in the Netherlands and Turkey.
He returned to the Premier League with Watford, after two years with Udinese, and has spent the last few years in Saudi Arabia.
He said of Spurs: "It was the first club in England where I actually used to go to the stadium. So, as a scholar at the time, we used to go and watch the first team play all the time. This was on Harry Redknapp. I had some great examples, first-team players I used to clean their boots, like Michael Dawson, Ledley King, William Gallas, and Sebastien Bassong, and I ended up meeting some of those players along the way.
"Sandro became my team-mate at Udinese, that is still around Spurs a lot, so it's one of the clubs that I definitely follow with love.
"But also Watford is a team that has been close to my heart, because playing there and having a chance to be with them in the Premier League for a season, and then captain the team for a short while, was also something really amazing."
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