The Spurs U19's are at it again. Beat Barcelona in the semi-finals of the 'Torneo Internazionale' in Bellinzona, Switzerland 1-0 and today defeated Sporting Lisbon 2-1 in the final.
Bostock, Obika and Townsend didn't travel (the latter two are currently out on loan) and we've included four U16 players in the squad (make a mental note of some of these kids...one or two will hopefully make the grade):
Jansson, Ranieri, Carroll, Durojaiye, Oyenuga, Kane, Cox, Butcher, Smith, Kasim, Mason, Waller Lassen, Parrett, Ekim, Caulker, O'Neill, Byrne, Nicholson.
Splendid work by Alex Inglethorpe. Over the past year or so we've performed superbly in the tournaments we've competed in at youth levels.
Whether they avoid the black hole between the academy and reserve team football is something Inglethorpe and the club have to work hard at. We’ve desperately lacked the presence of academy promotions in recent years. Everyone knows youth players who excel don’t always go on to bigger and better things. And to see 4 or 5 of them making the grade is a rarity. Manchester City, Arsenal and Manchester United have been prolific for some time now. It’s good to see a foundation finally being built at Spurs.
And equally good to see a winning mentality birthed from the academy upwards. Keep their feet firmly on the ground, emphasis on development and guidance and we might just avoid having to fork out £15M for the ‘next big thing’ a few years from now, because we’ve got a couple of them already in our ranks.