Lucas Moura says that he was convinced he was going to play in the Champions League final for Tottenham in 2019, but when he was dropped from the starting line up he had nothing to say to Mauricio Pochettino.
In May 2019, Tottenham won the second leg of their Champions League semi-final against Ajax with a dramatic late goal from Moura which got them through to the final on away goals.
The Brazilian's performance in the game will be remembered for many years to come, as he scored a hat-trick to take the Lilywhites through, scoring his final goal in the 96th minute.
The North London club's dream of winning the trophy came crashing down when they lost 2-0 to Liverpool in the final in Madrid.
Aside from the result, the 29-year-old was disappointed when he found out that he would not feature in former boss Pochettino's line-up after his incredible performance just weeks before.
In an interview with ESPN Brasil, Moura said: "On the day of the game, we were leaving the hotel, in that last speech at the hotel. Even the atmosphere was a little tense among the players, because no one understood anything.
"A historic classification like that, I was very confident, convinced that I was going to play, that we were going to be champions.
"I'm a very professional guy, with a very calm mind and at that moment I just wanted to be champion. So, I didn't have any reaction, nothing to say to him.
"And whether we like it or not, we have to respect it, right? But sometimes we don't agree with all the coach's decisions, we have to know how to respect it.
"And as I said, at that moment I just wanted to be champion, I just wanted to win the game and unfortunately it wasn't possible."
Moura came on in the last 24 minutes of the game and replaced Harry Winks, but Liverpool were already 1-0 up and the Spurs side couldn't manage a comeback.
Despite the loss, the forward says that he is still proud of the achievement of getting to a Champions League final.
"It was also a great pride for me," he added. "Being able to reach the Champions League final, with everything that happened in the semis.
"It's a medal I keep with a lot of affection, which I value very, very much. And I'm very proud of everything that happened that season,"
Since then, Moura has signed a new contract with the club, until 2024 and is a key player in the Spurs team.
He has featured in all of Tottenham's first three games this season, making a start in two of them.
With the arrival of a new head coach in Nuno Espirito Santo and some new players, including Bryan Gil, the Brazilian will now have to fight for his position in the starting 11.
