Destiny Udogie has no interest in dwelling on the past.
For Udogie, even Tottenham Hotspur’s historic Europa League triumph in Bilbao in May, the mention of which still makes him grin with pleasure, has to be reluctantly consigned to history now that the 23-year-old has developed a taste for winning.
“It was a dream come true, honestly, because it was my first trophy and to win for Tottenham is a big achievement for everyone,” Udogie tells The Athletic, speaking at the launch event for Puma’s new store on London’s Oxford Street.
“Honestly, I’m still happy right now because it’s something that stays forever.
“But the past is gone, I’m just looking to go forward, I’m just looking for the next challenge.
“(When you win) you become more confident in yourself. It makes you feel like, ‘OK, I can do this again’. That’s what happened to me.”
Destiny Udogie celebrates with the Europa League trophy in Bilbao (James Gill/Getty Images)
Udogie’s determination to look ahead is a driving force in his career, and has been important in another sense during an unsettling period for the defender and his young family.
On November 3, The Athletic reported that a Premier League player had allegedly been threatened with a firearm by a football agent in London. The city’s Metropolitan Police confirmed that a man, 31, had been arrested, and Udogie was later named as the footballer by an Italian media outlet.
Speaking about the incident publicly for the first time, Udogie says he is deeply grateful for the support of his club, who said in a statement on November 4 that they were assisting the Italy international and his family, but he wants to put the incident behind him.
“The club showed me good support and was next to me every day,” Udogie says. “I’m really grateful to them for what they have done and for keeping me and my family safe. It’s really good for me.
“Obviously, it was important (to feel that support). Because it’s a new city for me. It’s my third year (at Spurs), but London is a big city.
“So to be here with my family and my daughter, it’s good to have the club around me.”
Asked if he was shaken by the incident, Udogie says: “Yeah, of course. It was not something I’d wish on anyone. It was a shock. But it’s OK, now we look forward.”
The pillars of Udogie’s support system at Spurs are two fellow Italians, “big brother” Guglielmo Vicario and “big father” Fabio Paratici, the club’s co-sporting director.
Udogie and Guglielmo Vicario on Italian national team duty in Paris last year (Claudio Villa/Getty Images)
Paratici, who officially returned to Spurs in October, identified Udogie’s potential during his first spell at the club, when the defender was still a raw teenager coming through for Serie A side Udinese.
“He (Paratici) told me it’s the best league, he said it’s never going to be easy, but he prepared me for it. And I think it’s going well,” Udogie says. “He’s like a big father because we speak every day. When he signed me, I stayed at Udinese (on loan) for one year, so we didn’t speak that much, but as soon as I came to the club, we became close and he’s helping me a lot today.”
Vicario, Tottenham’s No 1 goalkeeper, is also a team-mate for the Italian national team and the pair and their families are close. They share a connection with Udine, where Vicario was born and Udogie played for two seasons before arriving at Spurs in a deal worth an initial £15million ($20m) in summer 2023.
It has been a testing week for Vicario, who was booed and jeered by sections of Spurs’ long-suffering home support after a mistake leading to Fulham’s second goal in last weekend’s 2-1 defeat in north London. Udogie says Vicario, 29, has reacted well to the situation, and underlined his quality with a solid display in the 2-2 draw at Newcastle United on Tuesday.
“Obviously, it’s never easy when the fans turn against you,” he says. “It’s always a big challenge, but obviously he’s a grown man and an experienced goalkeeper.
“So he was really strong. Against Newcastle, he showed he’s a great ’keeper. He’s old enough (to deal with it).
“He’s a good guy, incredible. We live close to each other and every day we speak. He’s really like a big brother to me.”
Udogie in action during Tottenham’s 2-2 draw at Newcastle this week (Alex Livesey/Getty Images)
Udogie may be replaced in the Spurs team by another close friend, Djed Spence, for the home game against Brentford on Saturday after starting against Fulham and Newcastle, but he says he feels back in “rhythm” following a series of niggling injuries since undergoing hamstring surgery in April 2024.
The operation ruled him out of Euro 2024 with Italy and, in common with just about every player at Spurs, he missed periods of last season with muscle injuries.
After starting in Bilbao, a knee complaint ruled him out of the start of this term under new head coach Thomas Frank, and Udogie missed another two weeks at the end of October with a similar issue.
“I think I’m in my best spell right now where I feel strong, I feel really good, I feel healthy,” he says. “I just want to stay fit, keep going and help the team. I feel like I’m getting to a rhythm. I just have to keep going and take care of my body every day.”
While Ange Postecoglou typically instructed his full-backs infield, Udogie has been deployed in a more traditional role by Frank, which he says he prefers.
“Last season I was more like an inverted full-back,” he says. “This season, I’m wide. It’s different, but I feel more comfortable now because it’s my natural position. So that’s good.
“I feel more like now I understand the league now, I understand the game,” Udogie adds. “The rhythm, the quality of the players, the intensity. I think almost everything (about the Premier League) is hard. Every year, you have to be ready. It’s never easy, but I’m getting there.”