Tottenham reward Ryan Mason with new five-and-a-half year deal

Ryan Mason has signed a new five-and-a-half year contract with Tottenham to complete a remarkable turnaround in fortunes at the club.

At the start of the season, the 23-year-old midfielder had never made a Premier League appearance and had looked to have little chance of forging a career at White Hart Lane.

But after convincing head coach Mauricio Pochettino of his qualities, Mason made his top-flight debut in the 1-1 draw at Arsenal last autumn and has not looked back since, becoming a key figure for Pochettino.

Standard Sport revealed in November that Tottenham were working on a new deal for Mason and he is now committed to the club until the summer of 2020 - as well as collecting a significant pay rise. His previous deal would have expired at the end of next season.

Mason returned to the team last night after recovering from a hamstring injury, helping Spurs edge a 1-0 win over Sheffield United in the first leg of their Capital One Cup semi-final.

Previous Spurs bosses have rated Mason highly but, partly due to a series of injuries, he struggled to force his way into the first-team picture.

Mason has also spent time on loan in the Football League with Millwall, Swindon, Yeovil and Doncaster.