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The Spurs Youth Thread - 2018/19

Blake Griffin

Well-Known Member
Oct 3, 2011
14,133
38,225
people will play it down but this has been a pretty bad summer for the academy. we've lost one our best u15s, arguably our best 1st year, arguably our best u23 from last season and now one of our best u18s from last season and top scorer(by a mile) in the entire league. i don't know, maybe they all just happen to have a bad attitude or the wrong mentality ..

there's still a big question over edwards and tanganga's future doesn't look particularly secure either, one other that went under the radar a little bit is the fact that lyons-foster hasn't signed a contract unlike some of his other, less talented teammates. i'm sure he will at some point but it's still mildly concerning that he's chosen to delay. it's not just about those leaving the club either, we're now struggling to attract others from elsewhere. ben knight, despite the logistical sense a move to spurs would have made, as well as him having previously toured with us, decided to go elsewhere. ok so he went to city so you can say not a lot we could do there but we also tried hard for sam greenwood from sunderland and he chose arsenal instead. i'm sure they're not the only two but just the highest profile examples.

most won't care about these players and only time will tell as to how much of a loss they were but if we continue this trend in the coming years we will pay for it eventually.
 

yankspurs

Enic Out
Aug 22, 2013
41,884
71,192
people will play it down but this has been a pretty bad summer for the academy. we've lost one our best u15s, arguably our best 1st year, arguably our best u23 from last season and now one of our best u18s from last season and top scorer(by a mile) in the entire league. i don't know, maybe they all just happen to have a bad attitude or the wrong mentality ..

there's still a big question over edwards and tanganga's future doesn't look particularly secure either, one other that went under the radar a little bit is the fact that lyons-foster hasn't signed a contract unlike some of his other, less talented teammates. i'm sure he will at some point but it's still mildly concerning that he's chosen to delay. it's not just about those leaving the club either, we're now struggling to attract others from elsewhere. ben knight, despite the logistical sense a move to spurs would have made, as well as him having previously toured with us, decided to go elsewhere. ok so he went to city so you can say not a lot we could do there but we also tried hard for sam greenwood from sunderland and he chose arsenal instead. i'm sure they're not the only two but just the highest profile examples.

most won't care about these players and only time will tell as to how much of a loss they were but if we continue this trend in the coming years we will pay for it eventually.
Well young players see no path to the first team here. They read poch’s quotes about chances for youth as nigh on impossible for them to get chances they need here, and see him continuously give chances to useless players like sissoko in low risk situations where a youth player could surely come in instead, so they go elsewhere.
 

IGSpur

Well-Known Member
Jan 11, 2013
7,939
13,758
people will play it down but this has been a pretty bad summer for the academy. we've lost one our best u15s, arguably our best 1st year, arguably our best u23 from last season and now one of our best u18s from last season and top scorer(by a mile) in the entire league. i don't know, maybe they all just happen to have a bad attitude or the wrong mentality ..

there's still a big question over edwards and tanganga's future doesn't look particularly secure either, one other that went under the radar a little bit is the fact that lyons-foster hasn't signed a contract unlike some of his other, less talented teammates. i'm sure he will at some point but it's still mildly concerning that he's chosen to delay. it's not just about those leaving the club either, we're now struggling to attract others from elsewhere. ben knight, despite the logistical sense a move to spurs would have made, as well as him having previously toured with us, decided to go elsewhere. ok so he went to city so you can say not a lot we could do there but we also tried hard for sam greenwood from sunderland and he chose arsenal instead. i'm sure they're not the only two but just the highest profile examples.

most won't care about these players and only time will tell as to how much of a loss they were but if we continue this trend in the coming years we will pay for it eventually.

I'd say Madueke is easily the best player from the new first year intake, which is a big concern. As you say not a lot will care, and it doesn't really matter if they don't come through anyway, but you always read fans saying we need a great academy so we can sign the best players and attract the best players to our academy. The thing is we aren't able to attract better players than the ones we are losing. The ones we are losing, if we had signed them they would be ,massive coups for the club, well Madueke and Forson were massive coups when we picked them up, but alas they don't see their future here.

As you say we had Ben Knight actually on tour with us, he would have been the best player in our age group especially with Madueke leaving and almost guaranteed first team football if we had a reputation for bringing them through but went elsewhere. Also heard that a really massive talents from the 04 age group in England really wanted to join our club as a couple of his friends were here. But his parents didn't even want to consider Spurs as they had heard negative things from parents of two different (big)talents at the club, who have either left or will likely be leaving soon and so we missed out on him. I'm sure these things never affected the older age groups, but something we're having to contend with now.

I think McDermott is in a difficult position convincing these kids to stay atm, and whereas before he could use the, look at our results line, he doesn't have the strong a position anymore.

Good spot about BLF, I really hope he doesn't leave, but then his brother left so might feel less committed.

I know some only judge whether a loss is a player who goes onto be world class, but for me a loss is any players who goes on to show they could have played at Premier League level whether as a squad player or a first teamer and saved us money on filling up our squad with average players.
 

IGSpur

Well-Known Member
Jan 11, 2013
7,939
13,758
@IGSpur and @Blake Griffin
I’ve watched Skipp a few times, and there’s lots to like about him, especially for an appreciator of the busy **** genre like myself, but the games I have watched were always the tougher games against better opposition, where I probably didn’t see the creative side of his game. Even if he’s not the type to play lots of incisive passes etc, I can still see a viable role for a player like him, but my question to you two guys is; does he have this in his skill set?

Most of the games I’ve seen he’s been very dynamic, very tenacious, technically very good, doesn’t flap under pressure, and plays at a good tempo, but he’s mostly kept it very simple and I’ve not seen much from him in terms of creative intelligence in his passing.

I repeat, this isn’t essential in a busy ****, to make them viable, and just based on what I’ve seen already, I’d already be more comfortable with him as a 6/dm/bc rôle than the likes of Sissoko or even Dier on a bad day. I just wondered if you two (or anyone else who’s seen lots of him) has seen it in him?

To add to what BG said he can be quite an aggressive passer and break the lines and on the rare occasion when he is given more freedom, I have seen him be a lot more creative, but I'm not going to hype up that side of his game. It is just something I've seen when he plays more at his level when he is the big dog and will try stuff, but generally he knows his place. I've never seen him pick out a long pass like Dier for example, on the rare occasions he does it, that's not really Skipp's game. I know you love a busy so and so, and while I like them and can appreciate them, what I like about Skipp is he actually has quality. I think Windy compared him to Matic which is quite a good comparison.

It's a shame somewhat that he came through with Kirby and TOB, as it always meant that he had to play the deeper of the 3. Seeing how well Skipp is coming on makes the TOB situation so frustrating, and while Skipp has always been a bit more dynamic TOB used to carry his fair share of the ball to the point he could also play wing, but seems to have turned into a CM/DM and his development 'appears' to have stalled in comparison. I really would love to see the u16/17 TOB come out, and I'm hoping he is showing that in his first team training and having those 2 still to come through would be great.

Got to say Skipp doesn’t look far off being ready to play some part this season. Quite a tough call between him and Amos right now both been great. But pretty obvious Skipp will in time be the superior player.

So you don't think he's overrated anymore ;)
 

IGSpur

Well-Known Member
Jan 11, 2013
7,939
13,758
I would imagine that’s more that spurs want him to sign a contract then loose him aswell . I was told there were better players in France , then young maghoma .

If Paris developed any sort of consistency he could be a dangerous player
 

Bus-Conductor

SC Supporter
Oct 19, 2004
39,837
50,713
Taking a look at the highlights clip video in the post directly above yours, it is Skipp's dynamism and tenacity that stands out. He is far more mobile than say Dier in that C/DM position.

He makes a good forward run at c2:06 and is unlucky that the 1-2 with Sonny doesn't quite come off.

His best pass is at c2:39. The most encouraging part is that Skipp gets his head up and looks round before receiving the ball, and it's this vision that enables him to sweep the ball wide, effectively over his shoulder, as soon as the pass comes his way.
i've seen him play a few nice passes, like those weighted balls inside the opposition fullback for the winger to get on the end of but i wouldn't really class him as "creative". the player he will hopefully become is the player that dier thinks he is, but more nimble. ideally you'd have skipp holding the fort whilst a more offensively-minded cm takes control of the attacking part of the game. one thing skipp does well though is carry the ball through the lines, he's not a dribbler by any means but a bit like winks when he sees a gap he can knock the ball ahead of him and run through it. i actually think that he and onomah would have a really nice balance between them but whether we'll ever get to see that i don't know.



not weird at all, he's a defensive player first and foremost so naturally will look more comfortable when playing deeper, he's also looked more than comfortable at cb when he's played there.


To add to what BG said he can be quite an aggressive passer and break the lines and on the rare occasion when he is given more freedom, I have seen him be a lot more creative, but I'm not going to hype up that side of his game. It is just something I've seen when he plays more at his level when he is the big dog and will try stuff, but generally he knows his place. I've never seen him pick out a long pass like Dier for example, on the rare occasions he does it, that's not really Skipp's game. I know you love a busy so and so, and while I like them and can appreciate them, what I like about Skipp is he actually has quality. I think Windy compared him to Matic which is quite a good comparison.

It's a shame somewhat that he came through with Kirby and TOB, as it always meant that he had to play the deeper of the 3. Seeing how well Skipp is coming on makes the TOB situation so frustrating, and while Skipp has always been a bit more dynamic TOB used to carry his fair share of the ball to the point he could also play wing, but seems to have turned into a CM/DM and his development 'appears' to have stalled in comparison. I really would love to see the u16/17 TOB come out, and I'm hoping he is showing that in his first team training and having those 2 still to come through would be great.



So you don't think he's overrated anymore ;)


Cheers fellas. The player he reminds me a lot of is the young Scotty Parker. Which is no bad thing, I was gutted when he chose Chelsea over us at that early stage of his career. But he had that same kind of combination of tenacity, dynamism and drive.
 

yanno

Well-Known Member
Aug 1, 2003
5,857
2,877
Cheers fellas. The player he reminds me a lot of is the young Scotty Parker. Which is no bad thing, I was gutted when he chose Chelsea over us at that early stage of his career. But he had that same kind of combination of tenacity, dynamism and drive.

Or, going back a generation, a young Steve Perryman, when he was a midfielder.
 

coy-spurs1882

Well-Known Member
Aug 31, 2012
3,989
10,442
with sissoko and wanyama out, i wonder if skipp would start against Milan, or even in the squad against Newcastle
 

spursfan77

Well-Known Member
Aug 13, 2005
46,680
104,957
Think Skipp had a great 2nd half yesterday. Still optimistic that he will at least get a chance here. Good thing abot him though is while he is one of those safe players, he is a top quality one. He is a quality DM and showed some of his ability to get forward really well last night, which he can often be stifled with. I think he showed how he excellently uses his body and can feint every now and then. He can carry the ball when he is allowed too, but he is relentless a very good tackler and even more importantly is calm and composed under pressure. I also think he times his challenges well and for one so young makes good decisions I'll rarely see him make a hospital pass especially if he is the deepest MF.

If I had the choice between one of Skipp or Amos getting chance next season it would be Skipp, as he has incredible potential and I think he is better than Amos at the moment, and it would be great for England. I doubt he will, and if someone like Amos got a chance I would be chuffed for him too as he is a really good guy and decent player.



This was posted in the preseason thread but worth posting here. He looks ready for the men's game now despite his age. Bigger lad than I thought
 

mancman

Well-Known Member
Aug 24, 2006
363
688
people will play it down but this has been a pretty bad summer for the academy. we've lost one our best u15s, arguably our best 1st year, arguably our best u23 from last season and now one of our best u18s from last season and top scorer(by a mile) in the entire league. i don't know, maybe they all just happen to have a bad attitude or the wrong mentality ..

there's still a big question over edwards and tanganga's future doesn't look particularly secure either, one other that went under the radar a little bit is the fact that lyons-foster hasn't signed a contract unlike some of his other, less talented teammates. i'm sure he will at some point but it's still mildly concerning that he's chosen to delay. it's not just about those leaving the club either, we're now struggling to attract others from elsewhere. ben knight, despite the logistical sense a move to spurs would have made, as well as him having previously toured with us, decided to go elsewhere. ok so he went to city so you can say not a lot we could do there but we also tried hard for sam greenwood from sunderland and he chose arsenal instead. i'm sure they're not the only two but just the highest profile examples.

most won't care about these players and only time will tell as to how much of a loss they were but if we continue this trend in the coming years we will pay for it eventually.
Certainly a lot to be concerned about but I wonder what the true situation is with some if not all of these players. I don't buy the argument that there is no first team pathway. Looking at last years wonderful England U20 team that won the World U20 cup only (at the moment) Lewis Cook at AFC Bournemouth is getting regular first team games. Nearly all the others are round and about the first team getting the occasional game or are on loan gaining experience. Bennetts and Griffiths had/have potential but only Bennetts was appearing (occasionally) for the England U18 or U19 team. They clearly needed experience on loan as a way of developing and maybe in time being potential first team players. Looking at them individually I cannot help but come to the conclusion that their agents are just looking for opportunities to make a fast buck with the long term interests of the player secondary. Simply put Bennetts, Griffiths and Edwards(sadly) are just not ready for the first team and to be frank they would not be ready for any Premier League team (at the moment). I really think these players need to take a reality check. As for Madueke and Forson, both I think taken from other academies, they don't seem to have any love for the club (unlike Kane, Winks & Walker-Peters) so getting a better deal elsewhere (again driven by agent (or parents)) is always a possibility. Thankfully the recent attention given to Oliver Skipp shows that if you work hard you do get opportunities even if you are only 17!
 

Bus-Conductor

SC Supporter
Oct 19, 2004
39,837
50,713
Certainly a lot to be concerned about but I wonder what the true situation is with some if not all of these players. I don't buy the argument that there is no first team pathway. Looking at last years wonderful England U20 team that won the World U20 cup only (at the moment) Lewis Cook at AFC Bournemouth is getting regular first team games. Nearly all the others are round and about the first team getting the occasional game or are on loan gaining experience. Bennetts and Griffiths had/have potential but only Bennetts was appearing (occasionally) for the England U18 or U19 team. They clearly needed experience on loan as a way of developing and maybe in time being potential first team players. Looking at them individually I cannot help but come to the conclusion that their agents are just looking for opportunities to make a fast buck with the long term interests of the player secondary. Simply put Bennetts, Griffiths and Edwards(sadly) are just not ready for the first team and to be frank they would not be ready for any Premier League team (at the moment). I really think these players need to take a reality check. As for Madueke and Forson, both I think taken from other academies, they don't seem to have any love for the club (unlike Kane, Winks & Walker-Peters) so getting a better deal elsewhere (again driven by agent (or parents)) is always a possibility. Thankfully the recent attention given to Oliver Skipp shows that if you work hard you do get opportunities even if you are only 17!


I don't agree re Edwards. He's already had a taste and didn't embarrass himself. I'm not talking league starts or regular time, but ad hoc minutes and the odd LC game he was ready for. If we can play people like Njie, Nkoudou and Sissoko as AM's then we could have given Edwards the same minutes and not been any the worse, and maybe have advanced his development, incentivised him more and kept him on message.
 

mancman

Well-Known Member
Aug 24, 2006
363
688
I don't agree re Edwards. He's already had a taste and didn't embarrass himself. I'm not talking league starts or regular time, but ad hoc minutes and the odd LC game he was ready for. If we can play people like Njie, Nkoudou and Sissoko as AM's then we could have given Edwards the same minutes and not been any the worse, and maybe have advanced his development, incentivised him more and kept him on message.
The enigma that is Marcus Edwards. I would love him to succeed but all the signs suggest otherwise.
 

Cornpattbuck

Well-Known Member
Jul 23, 2013
6,873
15,942
Every time I see Skipp, he looks like a serious talent with spark and nous (a bit like Winks in that respect). An old head on young shoulders. I've high hopes.
 

EQP

EQP
Sep 1, 2013
7,961
29,662
with sissoko and wanyama out, i wonder if skipp would start against Milan, or even in the squad against Newcastle

I'd like to see something like
Son
Moura------------------------Georgiou
Eriksen ---- Amos
-------- Skipp -------
Davies ------ Sanchez -------CCV-------- KWP
Poch has just confirmed that Lamela will not play tomorrow. Would like to see Georgiou given some minutes from the start.
 

willcpt17

Active Member
Apr 7, 2018
88
127
Does anyone think there is a chance T J Eyoma gets into the match tomorrow? With this being the preseason and him being 1 of only 3 healthy CBs I would like to see him get a few minutes in the second half. Also would like to see Georgiou get the start tomorrow.
 

ChristianBaler

Well-Known Member
Aug 13, 2010
1,877
1,246
Does anyone think there is a chance T J Eyoma gets into the match tomorrow? With this being the preseason and him being 1 of only 3 healthy CBs I would like to see him get a few minutes in the second half. Also would like to see Georgiou get the start tomorrow.

maybe a 2% chance of that happening
 
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