Tottenham Hotspur full-back happy to be fit again and thankful to Gareth Southgate for calling him into England squad

Danny Rose says he continues to have a strong relationship with Mauricio Pochettino despite his controversial newspaper interview – and he feels the Tottenham Hotspur supporters have forgiven him too.

Rose broke ranks to question Spurs’ ambition and transfer policy just before the start of the season, being fined two weeks’ wages as a result.

The left-back was thought to be a target for Manchester United at the time and some fans were willing to see him go, so angered were they by his act of betrayal.

But Rose has remained at Tottenham and, having been sidelined since January with a long-term knee injury, he made his return as a substitute during last month’s clash against Real Madrid at the Bernabeu.

He has since started the matches against West Ham and Crystal Palace and, having played his part in Sunday’s 1-0 victory over Roy Hodgson’s Eagles at Wembley, he received a standing ovation from large sections of the home crowd when he was withdrawn late on.

“For my part, what happened is forgotten,” said Rose. “I think it’s forgotten on the club’s part as well. There’s no point dwelling on the past if we want to take this club forward and go that one step further and win the league and go as far as possible in the Champions League.

“Me and the gaffer are fine. We speak most days. For the last three years, the lads will tell you I’m probably the one who’s in his office the most, speaking to him and going through videos and sharing text messages, even going round to his house.

“He’s been great at integrating me back into the team and getting me some minutes. I thought him putting me on against Real Madrid, even though it was only for 10 minutes, was a class act on his part, making me feel part of it again, even though he didn’t need to bring me on.

“As far as I’m concerned, me and the gaffer are great and as long as we’ve both got the same goals - which is to win a trophy for Tottenham - then there’s nothing to worry about.

“I don’t think there’s any relationship-building needed [with the fans]. They showed me that at Real Madrid away. I wasn’t so much nervous as wary of the reception I was going to get, but it was brilliant. I wasn’t expecting that reception.

“It was brilliant then, brilliant against West Ham and brilliant again against Palace. I think they’ve forgiven me and once I’m on the pitch I’d like to think everybody knows I’ll always give 100 per cent for this club.”

Rose admits he found it very difficult being in the treatment room for such an extended period.

“It’s been too long,” he said. “It’s been hard mentally watching the team doing well over the last nine or 10 months. I’m just grateful that I’m back part of it.

“There are literally no words to describe how frustrating it’s been - especially last season, seeing the football the lads were playing and how close they went to catching Chelsea.

“Even this season, sitting on the bench on Wednesday against Real Madrid, it wasn’t nice. Obviously it’s nice that we won, but it’s not nice when you want to be part of it.

“I’m just glad I managed to play on Sunday, came through without any injuries, kept a clean sheet - and it’s nice we could watch the games later in the afternoon knowing somebody was going to drop points.

“I’m not 100 per cent yet. I’ve only had a couple of weeks of training so I probably still probably need another month of training and playing games. Hopefully I can stay injury-free and Ben [Davies] and I can contribute and help this club go one stage further this season.”

Despite Rose’s lack of game time, he has immediately been recalled to the England squad by Gareth Southgate for the friendlies against Germany and Brazil on Friday and Tuesday respectively.

“That’s a big positive for me,” said the full-back. “It’s nice that [Gareth] knows I’ve not played much football but he knows what I’m capable of once I’m back in and around the team.

“My end goal is to be part of that World Cup squad come the summer, and I can only do that playing regularly for my club.

“I’ve spoken to Gareth a lot. I did a bit of my rehab at the England training centre before I started training here.

“I went there for a change of scenery. I’d spent a long time in the same physio room and the same gym here and it got a bit much so I needed a break. It was nice that the England manager was open to me going up there and doing some rehab there. It helped me mentally.

“I was around him for three weeks and we had dinner together most days and spoke pretty much every day. He’s been brilliant. He’s called me and texted me – he’s been first-class to be fair.”

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