'I felt like a kid at Christmas'

Steve Nash described his training session with us on Monday as 'a dream come true'.

The basketball legend, twice NBA Most Valuable Player and a 12-time All Star, joined us for our first session at Toronto FC’s KIA Training Ground on Monday ahead of the second friendly of our summer Tour against the MLS side on Wednesday night.

And it wasn’t a case of shaking a few hands, doing the warm-up and standing by - after being welcomed by Mauricio Pochettino and the squad, he participated throughout the session and impressed all with his footballing ability.

A Spurs fan all his life through the family connection - his granddad and father are both from Tottenham - Steve is one of the most high-profile sportsmen in North America.

“I’m lucky enough to have visited the old training ground (Spurs Lodge) about 15 years ago, so to do it again is much more than I deserve really,” he said.

“It’s an important time of the year for the players. They are doing a lot of heavy work and it’s difficult when you are travelling around the world to get that work in and feel fresh every day, or at least to fight off the fatigue and the jetlag.

“I try to keep myself fit and luckily that enabled me to get through it. These boys are in great shape and hopefully in for a great season.

“I felt like a kid at Christmas. I got lucky a little and managed not to embarrass myself but what an amazing day - one I’ll never forget.”