King finally steps up to mark
The players will face each other at White Hart Lane having followed the same path in life from a very young age but always with King feeling he was in the shadows of his former schoolboy team-mate.
The 24-year-olds are both products of London's East End, honing their footballing talents with a local U14 team called Senrab. But as far as King is concerned, Terry was the one who attracted the attention.
"When we played together at Senrab, John used to play in midfield," King says. "You could see he was a leader at that age. Even though he was quite small, he was really good in the air. He was a midfield general and a leader off the pitch as well. You can see those qualities today.
"No-one knew where we were going to end up, but all we knew was that we had a good team. J Lloyd Samuel, Bobby Zamora and Paul Konchesky were also in the side. Like John, some of them have changed position since then. J Lloyd was more of a forward, so was Paul Konchesky, but Bobby was always a striker and I was a centre-back. I think it was because I was the biggest and could kick the ball the furthest."
The difference in heights has diminished with King only an inch taller than the 6ft 1ins Terry but King also walks tall as a leader, having been handed the Tottenham captaincy following the departure of Jamie Redknapp to Southampton. Along with the armband has come a new-found sense of responsibility in King's game and the Spurs revival under new coach Martin Jol has a lot to do with the Dutchman's choice of on-field leader.
"The captaincy at Spurs has also done a lot to help my confidence and my game has got better as a result," says King.
It was a mantle King seemed destined to adopt. He is Spurs' longest-serving player, and though is not of the tub-thumping school of captaincy adopted by the likes of Tony Adams and Terry Butcher, his quiet man reputation belies a strength of character that has made him one of England's best defenders. Having arrived at Tottenham as a laid-back 14-year-old, King has spent the intervening time earning the respect of coaches, team-mates and supporters with his committed defending.
"I am quiet off the pitch and I am not the loudest on it, but I will try to lead by example. I am still young and I think the vocal side will come when I get more experience. I am the longest-serving player in the team and probably know the club better than anyone.
While King's demeanour has caused some to question his suitability for the captaincy, there is little dissent when it comes to the assertion that the Spurs' skipper is one of the best and most consistent defenders of his generation.
Even former Spurs managers Glenn Hoddle and David Pleat, famous for not seeing eye to eye on anything during their uneasy relationship at the Lane, agree on that. Hoddle was King's coach for three years at Spurs: "Alongside Rio Ferdinand, he is the most technically gifted player in the England team. He's a terrific asset for any team and he has a lot more strengths than weaknesses. The best defenders can smell danger and Ledley does that."
Former director of football Pleat, points to King's composure on the ball, his pace and flawless timing in the tackle that is endorsed by the fact that in more than 130 Premier League games, he has been booked just three times.
"Sol Campbell can be terrorised at times," Pleat said, "but Ledley is far more flexible and is deceptively quick. They are different players and Campbell is extremely tough, but King is more composed.
Tottenham's current run of form suggests King would not have to leave the only professional club of his career to fulfil that potential. It would also help him realise his burning ambition to play European club football. He is refusing to get too far ahead of himself, though.
"In previous seasons, we have felt like we have had a good side and should make Europe, but for some reason it hasn't happened. Our players are good enough to be up there, so we need to put pressure on ourselves to make sure we do it."
Victory over Chelsea today, a feat last achieved in the league in 1990, would represent a massive boost to Tottenham and King is optimistic.
"They are in a rich vein of form, but so are we. We had a good result at Stamford Bridge in September and we are confident of causing them problems.
"Over Christmas, we beat teams that we should have beaten. Then people said Everton would be a test and we beat them 5-2. Then they said, 'Well, Man United will be the real test', and we did really well there. Now it's Chelsea, which is going to be another big examination of how far we have come."
Tottenham's clash with leaders Chelsea is the commentary game on Today FM's Premiership Live today (100-102fm).
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