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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
Sport
Oli Gent

'Manager wasn't having me': Conor Gallagher opens up on struggles in first Tottenham months

Conor Gallagher has revealed his struggles settling in at Tottenham after arriving at the club in January.

The midfielder, who signed for Spurs from Atletico Madrid for £35million, has played a crucial role in his side’s avoidance of relegation from the Premier League.

The north Londoners have enjoyed somewhat of a resurgence under new boss Roberto De Zerbi, who has made the England international his starting No10.

However, Gallagher, the former Chelsea and Crystal Palace man, admitted to lacking in confidence in his first few months at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium

”I’ve not really been able to speak to anyone in the last few months,” he told Sky Sports.

“It’s obviously been really tough times for me and the team and I’ve just been so focused on trying to improve to help the team as much as I can.

"I was low on confidence, the last manager wasn’t having me, the fans didn’t think I was any good.

“I mentally dealt with that really well. I knew I could come back and show the fans what I can really do.

“Hopefully it’s only the start because I’ve got so much to give and looking forward to building an even better connection with our fans.”

Struggles: Conor Gallagher (PA)
Struggles: Conor Gallagher (PA)

Gallagher was signed by previous manager Thomas Frank, but he played just five games under the Dane, who was sacked shortly after his arrival.

Igor Tudor replaced Frank in the dugout, and Gallagher saw his minutes limited heavily under the Croat.

He played just six matches under Tudor’s short stewardship, but has found trust in De Zerbi, who has started him in every match of his tenure so far.

The last five of those came in a more advanced role in the Italian’s 4-2-3-1 shape, with Spurs missing the creativity of the injured Xavi Simons and James Maddison.

Gallagher hit a crucial goal in Spurs’ 2-1 win at Aston Villa earlier this month - a win that kept the north Londoners afloat.

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