"Unreal" is the word that Michael Dawson uses. The Tottenham Hotspur defender is not referring to Christian Eriksen's ability, Gareth Bale's world record transfer fee or anything to do with football, but instead the 220ft super-yacht that belongs to Joe Lewis, the club's reclusive billionaire owner, who invited André Villas-Boas and his players on board Aviva during a trip to the Bahamas at the end of last season.

It was a jaw-dropping experience even for a group of wealthy footballers, several of whom posted pictures of their visit on Twitter, and provided a rare insight into the life of a man who is never heard and rarely seen but has the final say on what happens at White Hart Lane. Indeed to illustrate just how much Lewis likes to stay under the radar, Dawson, who signed for Spurs from Nottingham Forest in 2005 and is the club's longest-serving player, had never previously crossed paths with the 76-year-old Londoner.

The Spurs captain nods when asked whether it helps that he is now able to put a face to the name of the man in charge. "It does. Certainly for someone like me, who has been here a long time now, to actually meet Joe and know what a really nice guy he is … he wants to be successful," Dawson says. "It was nice to go over there and a great experience. He made us feel so welcome. You could chat to him about anything."

Roman Abramovich also owns a yacht – twice the size of Lewis's as it happens – although there are few other parallels with the owners of the clubs that meet in a fascinating contest at White Hart Laneon Saturday. Abramovich has pumped a fortune into Chelsea, he is a regular visitor to Stamford Bridge and often shows his face in the dressing room. Lewis, on the other hand, prefers to stay firmly in the background, so much so that it is questionable whether many Spurs fans would recognise him if he walked down the Seven Sisters Road on a matchday.

Yet whether Lewis's yacht is under the Caribbean sun or moored up on the Thames at Tower Bridge, as it was a couple of years ago, Dawson has no doubt that the owner has his finger on the pulse at White Hart Lane. The picture that emerged from the trip back in May is that Lewis has an encyclopaedic knowledge of Spurs matches and never misses a kick. "He tunes into all the games, he loves it," Dawson says. "He's always watching. He knows what goes on. He would remember every game, every little thing."

The one major regret for Dawson about Tottenham's end of season tour – which included an exhibition match against Jamaica – is that "it would have been an ever better trip had we been in the Champions League". Spurs were still in with a shout until the final day of the season but, despite recording their highest ever Premier League points tally, they finished fifth, one place behind their bitter rivals Arsenal. It was a gut-wrenching disappointment.

Four months later, however, and optimism abounds at White Hart Lane. Spurs may have lost their most influential player in Bale but all the indications are that the £86m they received from Real Madrid has been spent exceptionally well. Spurs have won eight of nine matches this season, including four out of five in the Premier League. They have scored 22 times in all competitions and conceded only once, to Arsenal in their sole blemish so far.

"I think it was seven new signings [this summer]. It normally takes time but things have just clicked straight away," Dawson says. "Don't get me wrong, it's not always going to be rosy week in and week out. Look at Cardiff [last Sunday], we had to dig deep. That's a tough place to go and scoring in the 90th minute [to win 1-0] was a great feeling. But we showed the commitment and fight that you need in the Premier League. We've started brightly and long may it continue."

Arguably the most striking aspect of the new-look Spurs is the number of options Villas-Boas has to chop and change the team without weakening his lineup. Lewis Holtby, who set up three of Tottenham's goals in the 4-0 victory at Aston Villa in the League Cup on Tuesday, Jermain Defoe, whose double in the same match took his tally for the season to six, Erik Lamela, Younès Kaboul and Sandro have all yet to start a Premier League game this term.

"I've been very fortunate in the eight and a half years I've had here to play with some top players, world-class players, but I think at this moment in time, the depth and the quality we've got certainly has to be the best," Dawson says. "You look at the squad and, like the manager says, he's got two players in each position. Everyone is fighting to play in the Premier League and everyone can do that."

That Dawson is currently a mandatory pick in Villas-Boas's strongest lineup represents a remarkable turnaround from this time last year, when the central defender had yet to start a Premier League fixture and could easily have been playing for Queens Park Rangers, after Spurs accepted a £9m bid in August. Villas-Boas had five centre-backs to pick from and Dawson found himself at the back of the queue, behind Jan Vertonghen, Kaboul, William Gallas and Steven Caulker. On the opening day of last season, when Spurs lost 2-1 at Newcastle United, Dawson was not even in the squad.

"It was a hard day. Very hard," Dawson says. "The first day of the season and you're not involved. I knew on the Friday. I trained on the Saturday morning and then I was back home, with the brother-in-law down, watching it on TV. It was a strange Saturday afternoon when you should be involved in the Premier League. But come Monday morning I was back in training, worked hard and thankfully come November I was back in the team and never looked back."

Dawson being Dawson – the 29-year-old Yorkshireman is a model professional and as nice a footballer as you could wish to meet – there were no tantrums when he was left out. He carried on as normal, wishing everyone well before matches, even those picked ahead of him. "You've got to respect your fellow team-mates," he says. "What a signing Vertonghen was, Younès Kaboul is a top player, Steve Caulker, William Gallas – look at what he's done in the game."

It is pointed out to Dawson that not all players respond to being out of favour in that way. "Maybe they don't. But I'm not someone who's bitter," he says. "It's about the football club winning matches whether I'm in the team or not – don't get me wrong, when you're in the team and winning, there's no better feeling. But we all have setbacks in life. You can either lie down and be stood on or stand up and fight. Whether it was going to change or not, who knew? Luckily for me it did change."

Looking back, Dawson now reflects on that experience as one of "the two biggest learning points in my career". The first occasion, he says, was five years ago, when Spurs made a miserable start to the season. "Under Juande Ramos, I struggled for form and struggled for confidence. Harry [Redknapp] came in and changed things around. Last year could have been oh so different. I wasn't in the team, I knuckled down and got back in. And now I'm captain of a top football club and lead the boys out. It's a fantastic feeling and I love it."

Dawson is fully aware that raised expectations come with £110m worth of new signings and an excellent start to the season. Spurs are not just being talked about as top four contenders but possible title challengers. "Ask me about that [the title] at the end of the season," says Dawson, laughing.

"We've been together a few months, made big signings, but things can change in a matter of weeks. We've got a top squad, there's no hiding it. We've got to perform on a weekly basis, the Man Uniteds, the Chelseas – Man City won the league two seasons ago – they've done it for years and been in that top four. We've had experience of the Champions League and we want to strive to be in that on a yearly basis, that's our aim.

"We want to win things. We want to win trophies, we want to be in the best competitions. But it doesn't change overnight; it takes time. And it's no good talking about it, you've got to go and do it. You end up where you deserve to be and we've got to produce as players on the pitch.

"The chairman has backed us and spent. Now it's down to us to perform."

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