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Windy answers your questions on Tottenham Hotspur’s youth

5 min read
by The Fighting Cock
Youth supremo Windy answers some questions fired at him by members of our forum. For more information on Spurs youth, you can check Windy’s blog (windycoys.com) or follow him on Twitter @WindyCOYS. Tucker: Where would you ideally like to see youngsters like Pritchard, Ceballos etc. get loan time. Windy: As we’ve seen over the past […]

Alex PritchardYouth supremo Windy answers some questions fired at him by members of our forum. For more information on Spurs youth, you can check Windy’s blog (windycoys.com) or follow him on Twitter @WindyCOYS.

Tucker: Where would you ideally like to see youngsters like Pritchard, Ceballos etc. get loan time.

Windy: As we’ve seen over the past few seasons, getting the right loan club is vital. An experience like Ryan Mason’s had at FC Lorient this season can set a player back, whereas Kyle Walker at Queens Park Rangers/Aston Villa and Steven Caulker at Swansea City came back stronger, and first-team ready.

In terms of those specific players, I think Cristian Ceballos would benefit from being in a team where work ethic is important; he needs to learn to put a shift in for the team, to track the full-back, and to earn to the right to play. A League One club that wants to play decent football, but also recognises the importance of every player working hard would probably suit him – possibly Brentford or Peterborough United.

Alex Pritchard needs to start in the Championship, with a re-assessment at Christmas. For convenience, and easier monitoring, perhaps Charlton Athletic would be a sensible move.

Hegarz: Who do you think our most promising young talent is?

Windy: Everyone knows how highly I rate Tom Carroll, but of the more “undiscovered” talents that have yet to see first team involvement, I rate Milos Veljkovic very highly indeed. For one so young, he exhibits remarkable maturity on and off the ball, and is a genuine talent in terms of his technical ability.

Pairsy1882: Who, of the U21’s side, can you see getting first team opportunities next season?

Windy: A lot will depend on who is on loan – it can often be a case of being in the right place at the right time, as we saw with Shaq Coulthirst this season. By that I mean that there’s no way he’d have been on the first team bench had Jon Obika not been on loan. Realistically, I think Carroll will get games, that Mason deserves chances (although somewhat depressingly I’ve heard talk of him leaving), and Pritchard/Ceballos could be knocking on the door again, depending on whether they are on loan.

gbsthfc: what is the player with the most raw talent throughout all the youth systems (u21,u18,u17 etc) and who is the youth player that will make the most first team appearances next season?

Windy: As mentioned above, I think Veljkovic has a hell of a lot of raw talent. Another would be Nabil Bentaleb and, although I’ve not seen enough of him to judge, Harry Winks (an attacking midfield player) has won rave reviews and has trained with the first team squad.

Ramsingh: If you could say a single sentence to this seasons U21 side – what would it be?

Windy: If you focus your efforts, you could play for Tottenham Hotspur football club – Tottenham Hotspur football club.

Nevill_H: Coulibally/Pritchard/McEvoy, don’t/do believe the hype? (Sorry on the spelling front)

Windy: Coulibaly – don’t. Pritchard – do, to an extent. McEvoy – is there hype? I think Soli Coulibaly has a lot to learn before he can be considered a viable option – maybe a season for the U21s next year will do him good. Pritchard is good, but he’s not first-team ready as some would have you believe. Kenny McEvoy has a good attitude, pace, and a decent delivery, but still has a long way to go. Needs to put in consistent performances for U21s next season.

Kalyl: Do you think our long term development of talent will go downhill, up or stay the same what with Inglethorpe ditching us for L’pool? (some months ago already but would like to hear how much you think was down to him.)

Windy: I think we have a talented group of coaches who took on the Moniz ethos and ideas, and who, collectively, apply them. The loss of an intelligent coach like Inglethorpe, who understood the methodology, knew how to get it across, and seemed to have a good relationship with the players and his colleagues is a shame, but I think it was time for him to move on, and he should not be seen as irreplaceable. I’d expect an appointment this summer.

zin: Of the players who earned a new contract at the beginning of this season what did you make of their progress this season? I refer to Archer, Fredericks, Obika, Kane and Luongo. Also what of Cameron Lancaster? Do you see any future for him following his injury?

Windy:
Archer: Jordan really, really impressed at Wycombe. I only got to see him in action once there but he did well in that game, and their fans generally seemed keen on him. I feel fairly sure that he’ll be our third choice next season, and he might get some cup action.

Fredericks: For his own good, it’s time to cut him loose methinks. Doesn’t strike me as good enough defensively to play right back, and he doesn’t really have a trick to beat a man, so I can’t see him making it as a winger. Would be a decent utility man in League One.

Obika: He’s nearly 23, and I think he needs to move on. That said, he was an absolute bully in the U21 league (probably due to his age/experience to be honest).

Kane: One disastrous loan, one less than impressive loan. He went backwards this year – we rushed him into a Premier League move in my opinion.

Luongo: He did exceptionally well at Swindon – I hope to see him involved in pre-season and then go out on loan in the Championship.

Lancaster: I think his injury history has pretty much destroyed any chance he had of making it at Spurs. I’d love to be proven wrong.

[author name=”Windy” avatar=”https://si0.twimg.com/profile_images/704074888/coysman.jpg” twitter=”WindyCOYS” tag=”Windy” website=”windycoys.com[/linequote]

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9 Comments

  1. DAVSPURS
    06/06/2013 @ 11:14 am

    Windy what about JOSHUA Onuha he looks the part quick can dribble and can see a pass stand out for England schoolboys i hop i spell t his name proper and Michael Percil

    • Windy
      06/06/2013 @ 12:25 pm

      Onomah is definitely a talent – hope to see more of him in the U21s next year.

  2. Jay
    06/06/2013 @ 2:48 pm

    Any review on Zeki? I have seen pieces of him. He seems to have a lot of pace and a positive work ethic, but his decision making needs improvement. Is he a viable option for cup outings, or is more youth development required?

    Also, at 19, Harry Kane is still quite young. I unfortunately rarely saw him plying his trade with Leicester, but I did see his previous runs with Millwall. Would another loan to a PL newcomer (Hull/Crystal Palace) be the right move, or would he benefit from going back down to the Championship?

    Last but not least, the Falque question. I have been following his progress closely at Almería, and it seems he had a very successful loan spell. His cameo appearances for us have been pretty impressive, but at 23 he is not really much of a youngster anymore. Is he a viable first-team option or do you think he will be moved on?

    • Windy
      06/06/2013 @ 7:32 pm

      Thanks for the comment, Jay.

      Saw Zeki 5/6 times and I thought he was quite disappointing the first few times I saw him. Decision-making is where I agree with you. Will that come with age? Maybe. But for me there are others who are far younger in the team who are already far better decision-makers. He did impress me (when I least expected it!) at CB once or twice, so maybe that’ll be where he settles… let’s see. I’d expect a League One loan next season, realistically.

      Kane is very young, and people forget that. He did really well at Millwall – I think if I was involved in the decision-making process, I’d keep him around for the first few months of the season – playing in the U21s and maybe even making the bench, and then let’s see who we get in the cups. If we get teams that we should smash, give him a few minutes and take it from there.

      Ah, Falque. I was mega-impressed by his performance at Norwich in the cup, and then very surprised when he was sent away on loan. I can only think that it was a “shop window” loan – maybe homesickness, or maybe just a bigger market for him out there? I assume he’ll leave.

  3. Gary Morris
    07/06/2013 @ 12:52 pm

    Great knowledge Windy – What are your views on the young lads released today – Jack Barthram, John Bostock, Jack Munns Jake Nicholson. Bostock is the one which surprises me, bearing in mind the trouble we had acquiring him. Could he not have done a job for the U-21’s or been loaned out to the Championship?

    • Windy
      07/06/2013 @ 2:33 pm

      Cheers Gary.

      The only one I have any regret about is Barthram, who I thought put in consistently decent displays when I saw him.

      Bostock, for me, has limited appreciation of the other players on the pitch, and no real work ethic. Was never going to make it in the PL in my opinion.

  4. Jay
    07/06/2013 @ 2:43 pm

    Last three from me Windy, as I know others here have some questions.

    Laste Dombaxe seems to be a name I am becoming more and more familiar with. If I am remembering correctly, he made the bench for one of our matches (honestly can’t recall which one) since the turn of the year. Is there anything you can add on Dombaxe?

    Tomislav Gomelt’s loan spell with Espanyol B took most of us by surprise (I wonder if this loan spell has anything to do with our newly scheduled friendly with Espanyol). On top of that, finding statistical data for the Spanish 3rd division is…impossible, but it does seem he was integrated into that team. I know he is highly rated amongst his age group, but would you be able to elaborate?

    Last, I thought the coaching staff of our u21/u18 teams warrants discussion. Any game I have watched, especially of the u21s, has been beyond impressive. They play wonderfully attractive football, and the success they had this past season is remarkable considering the amount of players that were loaned out throughout the course of the season. I’m not sure if Clive Allen is the mastermind of this development, but what are your thoughts on the coaching staff this season?

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