Harry Kane shows true colours in dressing room speech to England teammate

Harry Kane has praised Djed Spence for his resilience in a heartfelt speech following the Tottenham defender's England debut. The full-back made history on Tuesday night as he became the Three Lions' first-ever Muslim player to feature for the senior squad.

Spence's England selection marks another milestone for the ex-Middlesbrough star. He has enjoyed a brilliant 12 months, winning the Europa League with Spurs whilst also impressing during the early stages of the current campaign.

Tuesday's game proved a perfect introduction for Spence as England demolished Serbia 5-0 in Belgrade . After the match, Three Lions skipper Kane congratulated him with a moving dressing room tribute.

He said: "We had a new debut today. I asked to do this because I saw this player three to four years ago at Tottenham and he had to go through a lot.

"He had to keep his head up, he had to work hard and now he's an England player, so I'm a little bit emotional because I know how much it takes to get here.

"And I saw what it was like and it was tough for you. So credit to you, your family, everyone involved... you deserve this one."

Kane then hugged Spence, who responded: "I'm grateful to make my debut. (I'm) over the moon. It's been a long journey, but finally made it here, but God is great man, thank you."

England boss Thomas Tuchel has highlighted the key reasons behind his decision to call up the player. The former Chelsea manager said: "He had a very good end of the season with Tottenham and a very impressive start of the season. He was impressively good against Paris in the European Super Cup final.

"He came up against a lot of quality on his side, against a lot of speed, handled it impressively well and kept on going with Tottenham in the Premier League start. He can play both sides, he plays very intense, he is in shape and he deserves to be called up."

Tottenham manager Thomas Frank has also showered praise on Spence. Before the international break, he said: "Wow. How good is that? Big credit to Djed. He truly deserves it. What a journey to have it at 24, 25 years old this year.

"Being called up? I don't think many saw that coming. He had a good end to last season. He had a top pre-season. He played very well in the three games against Paris Saint-Germain, Burnley and Man City, really giving a lot to the team. I'm so happy for him."

Spence is set to return to Tottenham duties ahead of their weekend match against West Ham United.