Burnley vs Tottenham: Ryan Mason reflects on weight problem

Spurs midfielder blames wrong type of weight-training for slow development

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Ryan Mason’s career may be soaring right now, but the Tottenham Hotspur midfielder blames the wrong type of weight-training for injuries that hampered his progress.

Mason made his international debut against Italy in midweek, bringing to a head a brilliant first full season for Spurs, but even that came at the relatively late age of 23.

While he describes it as a “dream come true”, Mason admits to thinking it would never happen after a series of injuries plagued his career.

“I got caught up in a time when I had too many people telling me I needed to put on weight and I was probably putting on the wrong weight. I was in the gym probably doing the wrong stuff. But now I’ve addressed that and I have a team around me who work to do the stuff that best benefits me on the football pitch.

“That wasn’t sitting on the bench-press doing that kind of stuff; it was more working on my legs and quads and strengthening me that way. I think times are changing. The Premier League has become a lot faster and it probably suits footballers a little bit more.”

Mason also thinks the technical level of young English footballers now matches those of Germany and Spain. “Definitely, many more clubs can be breeding English talent. You look at the Germans and the Spanish, they’re not better than us technically. It is important to bring young players through if they are good enough. You see what the [England] Under-21s are doing now. They are unbelievable.”

Burnley v Tottenham Hotspur is on Sky Sports 1 today, kick-off 1.30pm