Spurs keeper Gomes thanks Scolari for giving him his big break

Giving Big Phil a big hand: Spurs' new goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes thanks Chelsea boss Luis Felipe Scolari for his big break

After impressing in goal for his school team, Gomes was invited to train with professional side Cruzeiro, where he caught first-team coach Scolari's eye.

'I was only the reserve 'keeper for the junior side,' recalled Spurs' £7.8million summer capture.

'But then one day I was asked by Mr Scolari to join the first-team for training.

'It was amazing. I had leapfrogged the main junior 'keeper and here I was, training with Brazil international goalkeeper Dida, who was someone I looked up to and still do.

'Just to be involved gave me masses of confidence and I learned so much from Dida and Scolari in those early days.'

For Gomes, who will face his former boss on Sunday, it was a world away from the grinding poverty of his upbringing on a farm that lacked electricity in south-east Brazil.

'You might read about my background, my mannerisms, and you might think I'm a little eccentric, but you'd be wrong,' insisted the 27-year-old.

'I'm a guy who likes to be happy and I come to work with a smile on my face. I appreciate what I've got now because it hasn't always been that way for me.

'My family had very little money, we had no electricity - and the only time I saw a TV was if I went to the home of one of my friends. It was a very sheltered upbringing.'

Read the full interview in Hotspur magazine, on sale today.