Tottenham Hotspur boss Andre Villas-Boas has admitted that it was difficult to sell Steven Caulker in the summer transfer window.

The England defender left White Hart Lane in a £8m move to newly-promoted Cardiff City.

Plenty of Spurs fans were upset with the decision to sell the 21-year-old and Villas-Boas has revealed that, although he did well for the club, the fee offered was too good to turn down.

"Yes, it was one of the tougher decisions I have made here," Villas-Boas said of the Caulker sale. "At that time we were short at the back. We had just lost Jan [Vertonghen] during the Hong Kong trip but we felt the price was right and it was an opportunity that we had to take.

"I can understand why people were surprised because he was homegrown and he was a player who did well for us, but in the end we have great competition for places and we decided for Steven to move to another club.

"He has high expectations towards his career, towards a first-team place and we decided to allow that transfer to happen."

Caulker faces his former side in today's Premier League clash.