Jermain Defoe and Troy Deeney have been speaking about how talented midfielder Etienne Capoue was during his time at Tottenham Hotspur and Watford.

On the Football Firsts Podcast, the two discussed their time playing with the Frenchman.

Etienne Capoue was one of the “Gareth Bale Seven,” a group of players Tottenham bought using the proceeds from the sale of the Welsh player to Real Madrid.

It was anticipated that selling Bale will aid in the renewal of the remainder of Andre Villas-Boas’s Spurs team.

Their hiring that summer was more hit than miss, with Christian Eriksen being the most successful transfer they made.

For Tottenham fans in North London, Roberto Soldado, Paulinho, and Vlad Chiriches were never at their best.

Due to their extended tenures at the club, Erik Lamela and Nacer Chadli are viewed favorably by Spurs fans.

Jermain Defoe acknowledged that Etienne Capoue was a wonderful player despite how much they quarreled following his £9.4 million move, calling him a talented mystery.

It’s possible that this is what led to the Frenchman making only 35 club appearances over the course of two seasons.

Deeney aired his opinions of the 35-year-old when he eventually found himself at Watford.

Defoe shares memories of talented Capoue

Deeney highlighted Capoue while talking about players they had arguments with in the past, adding: “No one’s backing down, but no one’s going in with the aim of harming the other person. You and I are on each other, and that ultimately fueled us.

“Like I said, it’s [Etienne Capoue] Caps; morally speaking, we both fit the same category.

“We have such dissimilar personalities, but he wants to win and loves his family just as I do. At Tottenham, did you play with Etienne?

“Yep,” Jermain Defoe answered. He’s decent, isn’t he?

How talented is him, Deeney asked. He’s an idiot,” said Defoe before adding, “Oh my gosh. At Tottenham, I used to dispute with him all the time, but he now reciprocates.

“Unbelievable player,” Deeney said, “probably the best I’ve played with because he just had so much about him.”

The gifted Capoue who Deeney and Defoe spoke highly of was never given the opportunity to impress Tottenham fans.

Prior to joining Villarreal in 2021, he played for Watford for close to 200 times.

The seven times-capped Frenchman at Spurs suffered because Mauricio Pochettino eventually preferred the rising Ryan Mason.

There was potential for Capoue to be a very solid player for Spurs in the long run, but at that stage in his career, he couldn’t afford to sit on the bench.