Tom Carroll

[Ledleys Knee]

I'd be pretty upset if we sold Carroll without at least giving him a chance with our first team.

AVB played him 14 times in 12/13, including 7 times in the league.

He's also not as young as he looks - 22 isn't a schoolboy (though I appreciate Mason made his breakthrough at 23)

 

[Mr Pink]

In Poch's system? In the CM2?

i'm just not sure. I don't think he's got the bite and determination of a Bentaleb or a Mason.

Technically he has a good skill set. I'm just not sure he'd compete enough to make that skill set count.

 

[Sweech]

Didn't think he'd cut it with us at the start of this season, but he's been doing well at Swansea by recent reports - which has made me rethink slightly. Admittedly I've not seen him game in game out, but £5m is a nice little earner for the youth academy.

Playing that role in Swansea is a lot different than playing it here.

The lower teams don't park the bus against Swansea and they're barely expected to tangle with the big boys in the first place. Do you think Tom Carroll could handle the Chelsea midfield the way we had Bentaleb, Dembele (Mason), and Eriksen handle them? I really doubt it.

 

[Sweech]

AVB played him 14 times in 12/13, including 7 times in the league.

He's also not as young as he looks - 22 isn't a schoolboy (though I appreciate Mason made his breakthrough at 23)

Mason also has the bite to put in a tackle and make a late run into the box. Two things Carroll has been lacking and Carroll might be adding more to his run game, but his penchant for not quite getting stuck in or hounding opposition players is the key thing that I think is seeing Poch wave him off.

 

[allpaths]

look how poor we have been when mason hasnt been in the side and i think carroll would be a great back so that if mason is out of the side we still maintain the ability to move the ball quickly through the middle. Wouldnt be terrible upset if we sell and $5 million is a good fee for a niche player especially since we have a lot of younger strong cm prospects coming through. glad he seems to have found a home at swansea which is a great match for player and side.

 

[ardiles&villa]

Selling is a mistake. Give the lad a chance at the first team.

 

[prawnsandwich]

look how poor we have been when mason hasnt been in the side and i think carroll would be a great back so that if mason is out of the side we still maintain the ability to move the ball quickly through the middle. Wouldnt be terrible upset if we sell and $5 million is a good fee for a niche player especially since we have a lot of younger strong cm prospects coming through. glad he seems to have found a home at swansea which is a great match for player and side.

Routledge is doing very well there. So is Siggy.

 

[spurs-r-us]

I think he should be given a chance with us. Bet we would have accepted £5m for Harry Kane this time last season and look where he is now. Probably would have accepted even less for Ryan Mason who is a year older than Carroll and now a lynchpin in our midfield. I thought after the start of this season we would have learned to put more faith in our young players.

Yep. Every chance he doesn't make it, but before Poch played him in the pre-season I would have put the chances of that young striker (!) Mason who had been wasting away on loan as being a part of the 11 as zero.

 

[prawnsandwich]

Don't wanna drag this thread too off topic-but if Carroll is worth £5m then Mason is worth the same or more. Fantastic for MoPo to bring him forward-pays his own and his staff's wages this year.
Until we get the new stadium we need to be churning. We made a massive mistake pandering to AVB's grandiose ideas 2013 summer.

 

[St José Dominguez]

It's all well and good having good technique, the problem is when you scratch surface and realise that's all there is. He's the same as that Chelsea young CM who's name escapes me. Bit like Bannan too.
I've seen him numerous times for Swansea and been pretty unimpressed. He's 22 (23 in May) now and I don't think he's improved even 1% in last 4 years. Think choosing QPR instead of possibly an Ajax loan was a really bad decision.
From now on we're gonna have the 'Kane example' thrown about, I'm sorry but you need to be good enough and earn your chance. It's a romantic idea, but some (a lot) of young/youngish players just aren't good enough and won't make it at Spurs.

 

[JUSTINSIGNAL]

Hasn't got the skillset to play in the cm2 of Pochs system and doesn't seem to have enough goal threat to be a number 10. I like the kid but I can understand why we might cash in.

 

[yojambo]

For Swansea he has the same role that Bentaleb has for us, which is primarily collect the ball from the defenders and play out from the back. This notion that he doesnt tackle is jut plain wrong, he had more tackles than any other Swansea player when they played Chelsea.

If he was in our team right now im certain he would be playing to the same level as the other youth players that have come through. In fact i go so far as to say, from the current generation, he is the most gifted player the academy has produced. Entirely my own opinion that of course and im aware others will disagree.

 

[Sweech]

For Swansea he has the same role that Bentaleb has for us, which is primarily collect the ball from the defenders and play out from the back. This notion that he doesnt tackle is jut plain wrong, he had more tackles than any other Swansea player when they played Chelsea.

If he was in our team right now im certain he would be playing to the same level as the other youth players that have come through. In fact i go so far as to say, from the current generation, he is the most gifted player the academy has produced. Entirely my own opinion that of course and im aware others will disagree.

Not only is a one game sample a really bad idea to try and make a case with, but that one game sample had every Swans player playing like absolute crap.

 

[DaSpurs]

Not only is a one game sample a really bad idea to try and make a case with, but that one game sample had every Swans player playing like absolute crap.

It's aftually part of a trend, as his defensive numbers compared to the rest of Swans' midfield this season have been impressive, especially in the last few weeks.

 

[EJWTartanSpur]

My problem with Carroll has always been that he is too passive. He has admittedly never fully received a proper run in the team, but this problem has existed wherever I have seen him play whether thats out on loan or with England unders. We all know he has a really nice technique, clearly has some vision and a lovely weight on his passing, but if you compare him with Bentaleb there is a noticeable difference. Bentaleb has shown in patches that his passing and his ability to take the ball in tight spots isn't too far behind Carroll, but he totally smokes Carroll when it comes to harrying opposition, putting tackles in, and generally trying to make things happen. Likewise Mason. It's why, in both instances, these players have grabbed their chance in the first team like a bull by the horns and made an impression with the manager and fans alike. For me, even after just a handful of games in the first team last year, Bentaleb had totally passed by Carroll in the pecking order. Yes, he was overplayed for a spell, but acquitted himself well throughout most it and I could not have imagined Carroll being able to do the same through a list of games against top teams in pressure situations

Carroll is too prone to letting games pass by him - the terms/situation of the game dictate to Carroll whether he is involved or not and never the other way around. He can also be far too static off the ball and be content to sit almost 100% of the time instead of continuing runs or looking to play 1-2s and move into new spaces that appear.

I'd love for Carroll to do well and make it with us as I feel there is definitely something there, but you get the sense that that he may have been fatally usurped by others that made a sudden progression. If he can improve at Swansea and work on the passivity and keep improving defensively then who knows ?

 

[yojambo]

Not only is a one game sample a really bad idea to try and make a case with, but that one game sample had every Swans player playing like absolute crap.

Well he has only started 6 games. In the game against Man City away he had 3rd most successful tackles, against West Ham he had joint 2nd and against Chelsea he had the most, so he is actually improving this side of his game the more plays.

 

[iluvsteffenfreund]

Playing that role in Swansea is a lot different than playing it here.

The lower teams don't park the bus against Swansea and they're barely expected to tangle with the big boys in the first place. Do you think Tom Carroll could handle the Chelsea midfield the way we had Bentaleb, Dembele (Mason), and Eriksen handle them? I really doubt it.

Well he didn't ! They got thumped 5 zip and fabregas and matic bossed the midfield.

 

[ButchCassidy]

Well he didn't ! They got thumped 5 zip and fabregas and matic bossed the midfield.

And Carroll was directly at fault for at least the first goal.

EDIT: OK, after rewatching it that was very harsh. Still don't think he did well in that game though.

 

[DCSPUR]

And Carroll was directly at fault for at least the first goal.

Wrong 100%
Sigi was at fault

 

[thinktank]

Could be back-up #10.

Don't go, tommy.