Spurs under 21, under 18 Leagues and other youth news

[mpickard2087]

We scraped through that one rather.

Everton defended with discipline and broke with purpose, and our patient probing, particularly, from the always excellent Carroll, struggled to open them up. There was a point where our pretty midfield triangles would not have disgraced the Peru of Teofilo Cubillas.

Pritchard was disappointingly ineffective; Ceballos saw more of the ball, at times being almost Taarabtesque in his reluctance to let go of it. Obika was by some distance the pick of our front three, always looking a threat when we could get him on the ball.

The back four did well enough; Stewart in particular looks like a footballer. But the defender who really caught the eye was wee Jack Barthram, who came on as a second half sub, and, while snuffing out the threat of their left winger, was from that point on involved in just about everything good that we did.

Archer was impressively acrobatic and at times needed to be.

Cheers for this EB.

Interesting about Barthram, the little I have seen of him I quite like. Makes a good fist of wherever they ask him to play, be that on the right or left of defence. Always seems to behind others in the pecking order though.

 

[DEFchenkOE]

I know Pritchard scored, but something about his body language seemed a tiny bit off to me. Could just be because he has had a little taste of competitive football that the u21 seems like a bit of a come down for him. Or maybe thats just how it is, only the 2nd time ive seen him live.

Also I know Ceballos is a bit greedy but I hope we stick with him, once he bulks up a bit he will be a dangerous player. One on one he can beat defenders for fun at this level anyway, just need to see how he does against grown men.

Also thought Velkovic had a solid game, good on the ball and comfortable with both feet.

 

[Bus-Conductor]

We scraped through that one rather.

Everton defended with discipline and broke with purpose, and our patient probing, particularly, from the always excellent Carroll, struggled to open them up. There was a point where our pretty midfield triangles would not have disgraced the Peru of Teofilo Cubillas.

Pritchard was disappointingly ineffective; Ceballos saw more of the ball, at times being almost Taarabtesque in his reluctance to let go of it. Obika was by some distance the pick of our front three, always looking a threat when we could get him on the ball.

The back four did well enough; Stewart in particular looks like a footballer. But the defender who really caught the eye was wee Jack Barthram, who came on as a second half sub, and, while snuffing out the threat of their left winger, was from that point on involved in just about everything good that we did.

Archer was impressively acrobatic and at times needed to be.

Any chance of a player by player rating EB ?

 

[Spursidol]

Have no problems with Archer as number two next season he is a very good keeper.

Some statement - as you probably know he's done well on a League 2 loan at Wycombe, but would have thiught he would have needed a season at a higher level (preferably Championship) before stepping up to PL ? But I agree with you he's always looked a great prospect.

Be interested if you could write a couple of lines on the players you recall and/or a rating

 

[Spursidol]

Fryers played at LB

Cheers, well done for going - any chance you could wriite a line or two on the players you noticed and/or a rating

 

[edson]

Some statement - as you probably know he's done well on a League 2 loan at Wycombe, but would have thiught he would have needed a season at a higher level (preferably Championship) before stepping up to PL ?

As a massive fan of youth development the one thing that F***s me off is that they are never given the chance to show what they can do at the top level, I am not saying Archer is the 2nd best keeper we have, I am saying I have no problem with him being given a opportunity to show what he can do.Next season I want to see our own youth given a chance to shine.

 

[beats1]

As a massive fan of youth development the one thing that F***s me off is that they are never given the chance to show what they can do at the top level, I am not saying Archer is the 2nd best keeper we have, I am saying I have no problem with him being given a opportunity to show what he can do.Next season I want to see our own youth given a chance to shine.

Indeed I agree, this season we saw Verratti moved from Serie B(the same level of footy as Coulibaly saw, not that much mind you) to being the best player in a team full of stars against Barcelona. Sometimes the long loan process of moving up level by level could potentially be worse as Young athletes in other sports especially other sports like Swimming have shown that they can move from a low level to top class within months.

 

[Spursidol]

As a massive fan of youth development the one thing that F***s me off is that they are never given the chance to show what they can do at the top level, I am not saying Archer is the 2nd best keeper we have, I am saying I have no problem with him being given a opportunity to show what he can do.Next season I want to see our own youth given a chance to shine.

Good answer.

Certainly love to see him given a chance in preseason to show what he can do. Still think a season at Championship level would do him good (facing better strikers than at League 2) but if he does well in pre-season, who knows......

I'd be happy to be proved too cautious in giving Spurs youth its chance - usually criticised for promoting youth too much !

 

[edson]

Good answer.

Certainly love to see him given a chance in preseason to show what he can do. Still think a season at Championship level would do him good (facing better strikers than at League 2) but if he does well in pre-season, who knows......

I'd be happy to be proved too cautious in giving Spurs youth its chance - usually criticised for promoting youth too much !

Always remember the impact Nick Barmby had at Spurs when he first came into the team, and that is the impact I would like to see some of this generation have because it is the best we have had in a very long time.

 

[IGSpur]

Did you go to the game ?

Ye I went, and Ill try and give a breakdown of what i saw from the ideas on here. Would like to see if anyone agrees/disagrees

Archer: 9 - could be a 8 but a 9 is fair. Loud and organised. Made some genuinely good saves. 3 in particular; one where someone shot hard and low to his right and he dived low to palm it wide, the next; one of their players was through on goal and he rushed out bravely to smother him, and lastly near the end, after we scored our 2nd, one of their players shot with decent power and it deflected and was prob going top corner. Archer dived Llorisesque to get a hand on it. I echo the sentiments of the poster that said they'd have him in the squad. 2nd choice is huge though

Fredericks: - 5 decent game, came off injured

Hall (c): - 6 was dominant in the air I thought and composed at the back

Stewart: - 7 considering he's not that big battled well in the air. Put in some good and brave challenges and also looked composed. Brought the ball forward a lot, probably used to running with by playing fullback. Pulled off a Maradona in a tight area near their box.

Fryers: - 7 Did well got forward a lot and defended well too

Veljkovic: - 7 Our youngest player and you wouldn't be able to tell. Composed both footed and while being adept at the short passing has a long pace in him too. Only downside, Id put it down to his youth but he shied away from a couple of challenges

Carroll: - 7 Was deprived of the ball in the 2nd half and seemed frustrated but 1st half played class. Remember him making an outside of the foot curling pass releasing our right back down the wings. Also remember him receiving a pass near the middle and taking it on the turn away from an Everton player, and the whole crowd gasped in appreciation.

Bentaleb: - 6 Played well and you can see the talent is there especially early in the match. Great ball control sharp one touch passing. But lowish rating as he was guilty of losing possession a few times. He made some decent tackles too.

Ceballos: 8 - Although he was quite selfish today, he was a constrant threat. Whenever he got on the you thought something would happen. Created a lot of shots for himself with his quick feet and ability to shield the ball and shift it. Got the assist at the end.

Obika: 8 - 2 Goals. Strong upfront and held up the ball. Showed great determination to make the diving header at the end especially as he must have been knackered. Could easily have gotten a 10 if he put all his chances away.

Pritchard: 6 - Maybe a harsh rating but I probably relative to how good I've seen and know he can play. Didn't get on the ball as much as he probably would have liked, and although he's someone you would like to keep on till the end, but a change needed to be made, and Ceballos was playing a lot better.

Barthtram: 8 - Think he played most of the second half. With McEvoy they changed the game. Made some very good tackles. And helped create chances instantly. Was playing the ole Charlie to Lennon ball nicely with McEvoy. Also made the challenge to start of the counterattack for our winning goal

McEvoy: 7? - Could argue an 8 but wasn't as involved as Barthram. Whenever he got the ball though he was dangerous. They kid is rapid, burned their left after he had a head start. Put in some very good crosses, and kept beating his man. Think a few have said that he looks like Bale but plays very much like Lennon

Generally speaking we were good for a win mainly through our dominance of the first half. If it wasn't a knockout game you could argue a draw would be fair. First half you could tell why we were top of the group. Was happy seeing Bentaleb and Veljkovic our 18s playing so at ease with our 1st team fringe player Carroll. Their one touch interplay and movement was class. They can also use both feet quite well. MV and TC would play more long balls whereas Bentaleb was more of a Dembele with slightly better passing. Obika harried and made himself known and should have finished some early chances. AP got a goal by one of their defenders mistake. 2nd half Everton came out and hassled us a bit more and the game lost its fluidity. Everton had quite a few chances and Ross Barkley came into the game more as Bentaleb and Veljkovic were becoming a bit more sloppy. It was a lot more equal. AP and TC were struggling to get into the game and our only threat really was Ceballos. They scored a good goal ball in the box and the guy hooked it over his head over Archer. They had some good chances and Archer kept the scores level. Played very well. McEvoy put us on the front foot again and then we got a good goal at the end.

1882 made some good noise, and fair play to some of the Everton fans that made it down. Dont know how many there were but when they scored their equaliser before half time those hiding let out an instinctive cheer before ducking down again haha.

The away draw for next round is stupid. Agree the game should be at ours or a neutral venue. Oh and im liking how all our teams are scoring last minute winners now. Even the youngsters our adopting our new found steeleness whilst of course reserving the right to make things difficult a la the traditional way.

p.s. if my earlier posts had made it sound like I'd been in the pub since 2 it was because my fingers were cold and I was trying to touch type. COYS

 

[Bus-Conductor]

Ye I went, and Ill try and give a breakdown of what i saw from the ideas on here. Would like to see if anyone agrees/disagrees

Archer: 9 - could be a 8 but an 8 is fair. Loud and organised. Made some genuinely good saves. 3 in particular; one where someone shot hard and low to his right and he dived low to palm it wide, one of their players was through on goal and he rushed out bravely to smother him and the last near the end after we scored our 2nd one of their players shot with decent power and it deflected was prob going top corner and he dived Llorisesque to get a hand on it. I echo the sentiments then sentiments as the poster who said they'd have him in the squad. 2nd choice is huge though

Fredericks: - 5 decent game, came off injured

Hall (c): - 6 was dominant in the air I thought and composed at the back

Stewart: - 7 considering he's not that big battled well in the air. Put in some good and brave challenges and also looked composed. Brought the ball forward a lot, probably used to running with by playing fullback. Pulled off a Maradona in a tight area near their box.

Fryers: - 7 Did well got forward a lot and defended well too

Veljkovic: - 7 Our youngest player and you wouldn't be able to tell. Composed both footed and while being adept at the short passing has a long pace in him too. Only downside, Id put it down to his youth but he shied away from a couple of challenges

Carroll: - 7 Was deprived of the ball in the 2nd half and seemed frustrated but 1st half played class. Remember him making an outside of the foot curling pass releasing our right back down the wings. Also remember him receiving a pass near the middle and taking it on the turn away from an Everton player, and the whole crowd gasped in appreciation.

Bentaleb: - 6 Played well and you can see the talent is there especially early in the match. Great ball control sharp one touch passing. But lowish rating as he was guilty of losing possession a few times. He made some decent tackles too.

Ceballos: 8 - Although he was quite selfish today, he was a constrant threat. Whenever he got on the you thought something would happen. Created a lot of shots for himself with his quick feet and ability to shield the ball and shift it. Got the assist at the end.

Obika: 8 - 2 Goals. Strong upfront and held up the ball. Showed great determination to make the diving header at the end especially as he must have been knackered. Could easily have gotten a 10 if he put all his chances away.

Pritchard: 6 - Maybe a harsh rating but I probably relative to how good I've seen and know he can play. Didn't get on the ball as much as he probably would have liked, and although he's someone you would like to keep on till the end, but a change needed to be made, and Ceballos was playing a lot better.

Barthtram: 8 - Think he played most of the second half. With McEvoy they changed the game. Made some very good tackles. And helped create chances instantly. Was playing the ole Charlie to Lennon ball nicely with McEvoy. Also made the challenge to start of the counterattack for our winning goal

McEvoy: 7? - Could argue an 8 but wasn't as involved as Barthram. Whenever he got the ball though he was dangerous. They kid is rapid, burned their left after he had a head start. Put in some very good crosses, and kept beating his man. Think a few have said that he looks like Bale but plays very much like Lennon

Generally speaking we were good for a win mainly through our dominance of the first half. If it wasn't a knockout game you could argue a draw would be fair. First half you could tell why we were top of the group. Was happy seeing Bentaleb and Veljkovic our 18s playing so at ease with our 1st team fringe player Carroll. Their one touch interplay and movement was class. They can also use both feet quite well. MV and TC would play more long balls whereas Bentaleb was more of a Dembele with slightly better passing. Obika harried and made himself known and should have finished some early chances. AP got a goal by one of their defenders mistake. 2nd half Everton came out and hassled us a bit more and the game lost its fluidity. Everton had quite a few chances and Ross Barkley came into the game more as Bentaleb and Veljkovic were becoming a bit more sloppy. It was a lot more equal. AP and TC were struggling to get into the game and our only threat really was Ceballos. They scored a good goal ball in the box and the guy hooked it over his head over Archer. They had some good chances and Archer kept the scores level. Played very well. McEvoy put us on the front foot again and then we got a good goal at the end.

1882 made some good noise, and fair play to some of the Everton fans that made it down. Dont know how many there were but when they scored their equaliser before half time those hiding let out an instinctive cheer before ducking down again haha.

The away draw for next round is stupid. Agree the game should be at ours or a neutral venue. Oh and im liking how all our teams are scoring last minute winners now. Even the youngsters our adopting our new found steeleness whilst of course reserving the right to make things difficult a la the traditional way.

p.s. if my earlier posts had made it sound like I'd been in the pub since 2 it was because my fingers were cold and I was trying to touch type. COYS

Cheers IGspur. Much appreciated.

 

[elDiablo]

Ye I went, and Ill try and give a breakdown of what i saw from the ideas on here. Would like to see if anyone agrees/disagrees

Archer: 9 - could be a 8 but a 9 is fair. Loud and organised. Made some genuinely good saves. 3 in particular; one where someone shot hard and low to his right and he dived low to palm it wide, the next; one of their players was through on goal and he rushed out bravely to smother him, and lastly near the end, after we scored our 2nd, one of their players shot with decent power and it deflected and was prob going top corner. Archer dived Llorisesque to get a hand on it. I echo the sentiments of the poster that said they'd have him in the squad. 2nd choice is huge though

Fredericks: - 5 decent game, came off injured

Hall (c): - 6 was dominant in the air I thought and composed at the back

Stewart: - 7 considering he's not that big battled well in the air. Put in some good and brave challenges and also looked composed. Brought the ball forward a lot, probably used to running with by playing fullback. Pulled off a Maradona in a tight area near their box.

Fryers: - 7 Did well got forward a lot and defended well too

Veljkovic: - 7 Our youngest player and you wouldn't be able to tell. Composed both footed and while being adept at the short passing has a long pace in him too. Only downside, Id put it down to his youth but he shied away from a couple of challenges

Carroll: - 7 Was deprived of the ball in the 2nd half and seemed frustrated but 1st half played class. Remember him making an outside of the foot curling pass releasing our right back down the wings. Also remember him receiving a pass near the middle and taking it on the turn away from an Everton player, and the whole crowd gasped in appreciation.

Bentaleb: - 6 Played well and you can see the talent is there especially early in the match. Great ball control sharp one touch passing. But lowish rating as he was guilty of losing possession a few times. He made some decent tackles too.

Ceballos: 8 - Although he was quite selfish today, he was a constrant threat. Whenever he got on the you thought something would happen. Created a lot of shots for himself with his quick feet and ability to shield the ball and shift it. Got the assist at the end.

Obika: 8 - 2 Goals. Strong upfront and held up the ball. Showed great determination to make the diving header at the end especially as he must have been knackered. Could easily have gotten a 10 if he put all his chances away.

Pritchard: 6 - Maybe a harsh rating but I probably relative to how good I've seen and know he can play. Didn't get on the ball as much as he probably would have liked, and although he's someone you would like to keep on till the end, but a change needed to be made, and Ceballos was playing a lot better.

Barthtram: 8 - Think he played most of the second half. With McEvoy they changed the game. Made some very good tackles. And helped create chances instantly. Was playing the ole Charlie to Lennon ball nicely with McEvoy. Also made the challenge to start of the counterattack for our winning goal

McEvoy: 7? - Could argue an 8 but wasn't as involved as Barthram. Whenever he got the ball though he was dangerous. They kid is rapid, burned their left after he had a head start. Put in some very good crosses, and kept beating his man. Think a few have said that he looks like Bale but plays very much like Lennon

Generally speaking we were good for a win mainly through our dominance of the first half. If it wasn't a knockout game you could argue a draw would be fair. First half you could tell why we were top of the group. Was happy seeing Bentaleb and Veljkovic our 18s playing so at ease with our 1st team fringe player Carroll. Their one touch interplay and movement was class. They can also use both feet quite well. MV and TC would play more long balls whereas Bentaleb was more of a Dembele with slightly better passing. Obika harried and made himself known and should have finished some early chances. AP got a goal by one of their defenders mistake. 2nd half Everton came out and hassled us a bit more and the game lost its fluidity. Everton had quite a few chances and Ross Barkley came into the game more as Bentaleb and Veljkovic were becoming a bit more sloppy. It was a lot more equal. AP and TC were struggling to get into the game and our only threat really was Ceballos. They scored a good goal ball in the box and the guy hooked it over his head over Archer. They had some good chances and Archer kept the scores level. Played very well. McEvoy put us on the front foot again and then we got a good goal at the end.

1882 made some good noise, and fair play to some of the Everton fans that made it down. Dont know how many there were but when they scored their equaliser before half time those hiding let out an instinctive cheer before ducking down again haha.

The away draw for next round is stupid. Agree the game should be at ours or a neutral venue. Oh and im liking how all our teams are scoring last minute winners now. Even the youngsters our adopting our new found steeleness whilst of course reserving the right to make things difficult a la the traditional way.

p.s. if my earlier posts had made it sound like I'd been in the pub since 2 it was because my fingers were cold and I was trying to touch type. COYS

Thanks IG, great report.
After the weekend, regardless, I will be really excited for preseason to come around, as you would imagine a few of these guys will be involved with the first team squad. Especially the likes of McEvoy, Ceballos, Pritchard and Bentelab. Maybe even Obika will get one last chance?

It's probably been mentioned, but when is the final?

 

[ItsBoris]

Hey IGSpur, thanks for your ratings, much appreciated. Someone else posted that Carroll and Barkley were the best players on the pitch by far, would you say that's fairly accurate?

I'm kind of curious since Carroll has started in our team and played pretty well (imo) at senior level, whether other players in our youth teams look like they are on his level yet.

 

[DEFchenkOE]

For Everton Barkley and their striker, (scored the first goal) were their best players.

Carroll was good on the ball but I wouldn't say he was by far our beat player, he just fit into place nicely with the other midfielders.

Agree with what a few others have said about Barthram, very good defensively put in some crunching tackles that stopped the Everton left winger dead in his tracks. Only thing is he seems tiny, not sure of his age and if he has more growing to do but it might be a problem when up against bigger guys.

Something that really disappoints me though is essential general coverage of this tournament. This u21 league is supposed to be a platform for the youth in this country, allthe best young up and ccoming players yet we get no tv coverage for it whatsoever. Not even a half an hour highlights show. Yet I can watch live coverage of college American football and basketball on espn America. I find that annoying personally.

Also think the club should do more, where are the match highlights since they can't be bothered to show any of he games live on Spurs tv. Where are the youth player and coach interviews? The U21's should be old enough to do interviews in front of a camera by that age. Also helps to prepare them for the media work should they make it through to the top level.

 

[newbie]

We need spurs TV or a load of clubs to do a joint one with under 21s and under 18s games. Spurs have the money and it would help show case our talent.

 

[Wirral Spurs]

The final will be at Man U or Liverpool, anyone fancy coming up? Maybe an 1882 away day?

 

[DEFchenkOE]

Match report from EFC: http://www.evertonfc.com/match/report/1213/tottenham-hotspur-u21s-v-everton-u21s

"Everton Under-21s' 16-game unbeaten run came to an end as they were denied a place in the play-off final by a late Jonathan Obika goal.

The Spurs forward netted two minutes before full-time to decide a five-goal thriller at White Hart Lane.

It was cruel blow for Everton who had twice come from behind to get back on level terms.

After Alex Pritchard had opened the scoring on 10 minutes, Conor McAleny’s goal in first half stoppage time ensured it was all-square at the break.


Conor McAleny celebrates netting Everton's first equaliser


Obika put Tottenham back in front moments after the restart before Chris Long replied to make it 2-2 almost immediately.

Everton were the team in the ascendency throughout the majority of the second period but Obika’s second goal of the evening on 89 minutes ensured it was Tottenham who progressed through to the final where they will play Manchester United or Liverpool.

Having beaten Newcastle United with an experienced team, Alan Stubbs named a younger side at White Hart Lane. Only four of the starting line-up – Luke Garbutt, Shane Duffy, Ross Barkley and Jan Mucha – had sampled first team football for the Blues this season.

Everton struggled to find their rhythm in the first half as Tottenham – cheered on by a sizeable and enthusiastic crowd – settled the quickest.


Chris Long lobs in the second Blues goal


Indeed, the hosts were ahead after just 10 minutes when winger Pritchard capitalised on John Stones’ weak header, seizing possession and curling low past Jan Mucha from just inside the area.

The menacing Obika twice came close to doubling the lead, firstly forcing Mucha into a fine low save before later blazing over from inside the six-yard box.

Cristian Ceballos also missed the target by the narrowest of margins as Spurs seemed well in control.

But after defending for the majority of the first period, Everton began to grow into the game in the moments leading up to half-time.


Alan Stubbs directs proceedings from the touchline


Barkley curled a free-kick just past the post and Duffy headed over the bar as the home side were pinned back.

The Blues got their leveller with the last kick of the first half as McAleny made it two goals in as many games with a fierce shot that arrowed into the bottom corner.

But no sooner was the second half underway, Everton found themselves behind for a second time when Stones was robbed of the ball on the edge of the area by Obika who finished confidently past Mucha.

However, Everton came roaring back for a second time just two minutes later when Long netted with a superb lob.

Stones didn’t let the earlier mistake affect his performance as he contributed with a clever pass into the winger who hooked the ball up and over Archer and into the back of the net from all of 20 yards out.

With parity again restored, Everton sensed that a winner was there for the taking. Garbutt’s deflected effort and McAleny’s sizzling shot from distance were both saved by Archer.


Skipper Shane Duffy is gutted at the final whistle


It was one-way traffic as the Blues poured forward, with Garbutt a constant outlet at left-back.

The young defender delivered two excellent crosses which could very easily have led to a third Blues goal; Long striking the outside of the post from close-range and Barkley planting a free header inches wide from the outswinging centres.

They were opportunities that Everton were to rue as Spurs nicked a decisive goal in the 89th minute.

Obika found himself in the right place inside a packed penalty box, stooping to head home Ceballos’ inviting cross and score the goal which brought the curtain down on Everton Under-21s’ season."

 

[Spursidol]

Ray Lo's usual excellent descriptive report of the u21 match v Everton
http://www.spursodyssey.com/1213/u21ev130513.html#.UZF-tnRdUcQ.twitter

 

[JUSTINSIGNAL]

Why doesn't someone start an online petition to get Spurs TV to start showing our U21 matches?

 

[Spursidol]

For Everton Barkley and their striker, (scored the first goal) were their best players.

Carroll was good on the ball but I wouldn't say he was by far our beat player, he just fit into place nicely with the other midfielders.

Agree with what a few others have said about Barthram, very good defensively put in some crunching tackles that stopped the Everton left winger dead in his tracks. Only thing is he seems tiny, not sure of his age and if he has more growing to do but it might be a problem when up against bigger guys.

Something that really disappoints me though is essential general coverage of this tournament. This u21 league is supposed to be a platform for the youth in this country, allthe best young up and ccoming players yet we get no tv coverage for it whatsoever. Not even a half an hour highlights show. Yet I can watch live coverage of college American football and basketball on espn America. I find that annoying personally.

Also think the club should do more, where are the match highlights since they can't be bothered to show any of he games live on Spurs tv. Where are the youth player and coach interviews? The U21's should be old enough to do interviews in front of a camera by that age. Also helps to prepare them for the media work should they make it through to the top level.

Thanks for this. Would you be able to write a couple of llines on individual players you can recall and/or a rating ?