Former Tottenham midfielder Allan Nielsen is convinced Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg will prove a big hit.

The Denmark midfielder joined Spurs last week from Southampton.

“I think he has got through many challenges football-wise to grow," Nielsen told the club's website.

“He was of course a huge talent as a youngster and he was very mature as a player with big confidence but sometimes that can also play against you because it is hard to join big clubs at an early age and the expectation they have towards you… sometimes that can be a little bit tricky.

“He started well in the Danish national team, he came in and you could see – 'wow, what a player, what a posture' – and then he came into a few challenges personally, in the team, around himself, which then cost his position in the national team.

"After that I think he has been growing immensely and also what I've seen from Southampton – you're not a captain in a Premier League side just like that. He was, and he earned it. I think the timing for him to come to a big club like Tottenham and the expectation… I think it's just perfect."

The Dane continued: “I have huge expectations for him to fit into the team and as I said, I think he's just perfect for Tottenham. Under the coaching staff the club has right now, he can really grow into a mature, top Premier League player.

"He has been outside Denmark and away from home from a young age, he's been in and out of the national team, he's been at Southampton, so I think right now he has so many things he can build on as a player and I believe it's really the right time for him to come to Tottenham. I think it's a very good signing that the Club has made."