Radu Dragusin believes he has "improved a lot" and "evolved as a player" as he approaches the first anniversary of his Tottenham transfer. In desperate need of signing a centre-back 12 months ago due to a real lack of options in the position, Spurs moved quickly in the January transfer market to secure the signing of the talented youngster from Italian club Genoa.

Opportunities in the Tottenham XI were extremely hard to come by during his first few months at the club due to the form of Micky van de Ven and Cristian Romero. Dragusin was limited to nine appearances for the Lilywhites, with four of those coming from the start of games in the Premier League.

Tottenham's return to Europe and the club's current injury crisis has seen a big increase in match minutes for Dragusin this season. The 22-year-old has so far made 17 appearances in all competitions since August and he has really impressed in a number of those outings.

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Always going to take time for the player to fully adapt to Ange Postecoglou's football philosophy and the pace and intensity of Premier League football, Dragusin now feels right at home in England.

"It's going really well," said the defender in an interview with Tottenham's matchday programme for the Manchester United game. "Maybe I needed some time to really fit in and adapt to this league but now l feel really good.

"When you're around the club, playing regular games in a row, I feel that I've already got the rhythm of it by playing - especially in the last period, I played some good games. I enjoy being part of this group and I'm working on becoming a better version of myself every day.

"Coming here was one of the best moments of my life and it is a dream come true to be able to play in the Premier League."

He added: "I feel I've evolved as a player and as a person being part of this great team and squad that we have here. I didn't really know what to expect, but I think with the time I've grown in experience. I'm still in the beginning of my career and I still have a lot to learn.

"But, on a personal level, I think I've improved a lot. I feel like under Ange and under the staff I have evolved as a player. The way we defend here, it was really different than the way I defended in the past, but I really like the style because it's very aggressive and we catch a lot of offsides, so we have an advantage on this defensive part. I think it's a really nice and enjoyable way of playing football."

Dragusin is the club's only available senior centre-back right now due to Romero, Van de Ven and Ben Davies' injuries. The ex-Genoa man has had to get used to playing alongside different players across the course of the season, with 18-year-old Archie Gray his latest partner at the heart of defence.

"Obviously, with the injuries it's always tough, you know, because you have to manage the players very well," said the Romanian. "The way we train is the same as the centre-back and as a right-back or left-back. I mean, we have our principles, and everybody knows their job. So, in a defensive way, everybody knows what they have to do, but of course I will try my best to help and talk throughout the game.

"Then when you go on the pitch, you have to give your best regardless of which position you're used to playing. But we are a group of players with quality that I trust a lot, and, regardless of any injury problems, we will go out there and do our best and try to play our football."

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