Pedro Porro believes Ange Postecoglou’s system suits his attributes really well and he is enjoying his new role in the team.
Having played exclusively as a wing-back over the last few years and having shown some defensive weaknesses after arriving at Tottenham in January, many questioned whether Porro would be able to operate as an inverted full-back.
LONDON, ENGLAND – AUGUST 19: Pedro Porro of Tottenham Hotspur looks on during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on August 19, 2023 in London, England. (Photo by Chloe Knott – Danehouse/Getty Images)
That is a question that the Spaniard has answered resoundingly over recent weeks, proving a threat whenever he picks up the ball in the middle of the park, owing to his vision and passing range.
The 23-year-old admitted that he is now enjoying the freedom afforded to him in the new system.
Pedro Porro is confident under Ange Postecoglou
He told Sky Sports about his new role at Spurs: “It’s a system that I’m really suited to and it’s really working well for me.
“It’s a new system that I haven’t played before. I’m playing inside as a full-back, but it’s somewhere I’m feeling confident. I’m feeling really happy out there and I think you can see that when I’m playing.”
Porro admitted that he has had to work on the defensive side of his game in order to play in a back four and revealed that he now understands what Postecoglou and his coaching staff expect from him.
He continued: “For me, it’s not been so difficult to adapt to the new system. I’m someone who takes on these new concepts relatively easily.
“The difference is that with five [at the back], I’m able to have that more freedom to attack, whereas with four [at the back] often I’m defending in a line of four so I’ve been working really hard on my defensive game and I think that I’m improving on that front.
“It is different, but I feel good in both systems and, really, I’ll play wherever the coach asks me to. I’m enjoying it and increasingly every day I think I’ve got the vision. The coaching staff are saying I’ve got the vision to pick up this part of the game and the new system.”
Porro demonstrated against Burnley just how deadly he can be when he is afforded space and time in the central areas, picking out Son Heung-min’s run with a perfectly weighted through ball in the second half.
When asked about the position that he picked up for the goal, he said: “In this particular instance I just tried to be focused and I’m always trying to look for the spaces.
“Quite often what we’re working on is the need to be ready and to be able to pick up spaces where you can’t be picked up by the opposition, so that’s really what we’re working on a lot and that’s what I’ve done here.”
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To Postecoglou’s credit, he was always confident that Porro had the attributes to thrive in the inverted right-back role, even though it was not so obvious to the rest of us. The Spaniard seems to be getting better with each game he plays in that position.
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