Tottenham Hotspur – Three Young Guns
Mauricio Pochettino has never been afraid to throw youngsters into the fray, with Dele Alli and Harry Winks just two who have established themselves over the last two seasons for Tottenham.
Alli is now one of the hottest prospects in the game, while injury cut short a breakthrough season for Winks last season as he became a regular contributor in midfield alongside Victor Wanyama, Mousa Dembélé and Eric Dier.
With a slight overhaul in the Spurs squad expected over the summer, and a couple of possible departures of first team regulars, we’ve picked out three youngsters who could be key figures going forward.
Kyle Walker-Peters
(Robert Cianflone – FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images)
One of those who could be on his way this summer looks to be Kyle Walker, who is rumoured to be heading to Manchester City for a big-money contract.
His replacement is already in place, with Kieran Trippier having leapfrogged Walker in the pecking order by the end of the season – most likely because of the impending move.
Filling Trippier’s back-up role could another man with a very familiar name. Kyle Walker-Peters is still only 20, and missed the chance to make his Premier League debut at the end of the season because he was away with England Under-20s.
That was clearly the right call as he helped them to World Cup glory, while he showed his ability to play on both flanks.
While Spurs have been linked to Fulham’s Ryan Sessegnon as a potential option on the left, Walker-Peters has shown that he could be a long-term contributor, possibly as soon as next season.
Joshua Onomah
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Another of the victorious England Under-20s, Joshua Onomah is already a familiar face to Spurs fans, having played 12 games last season, the majority off the bench.
That included a first goal, in an EFL Cup win over Gillingham, while he made 19 appearances the season before.
What may have come as a surprise for many Spurs fans when seeing Onomah at the World Cup was that he played in a deeper role in central midfield, rather than on the flank as he has been used by Pochettino.
Much more comfortable in the Dembélé role, where he can drive forward from deep and pick passes, the 20-year-old may have done enough to earn a few more opportunities in the middle of the park next season.
Spurs aren’t short of options that area of the park, but Onomah looks like he has the potential to force his way into the rotation at least and give Pochettino a little more depth.
Kazaiah Sterling
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If Walker-Peters and Onomah are expected to feature at least in some way next season, striker Kazaiah Sterling is a little further back in his development.
Still only 18, Sterling was a constant goal threat for Spurs Under-18s last season and was even part of the squad that went out to Hong Kong for the post-season friendly against Kitchee SC.
He scored in that game and will train with the Spurs first team squad next season with Pochettino keen to see him learn from Harry Kane.
Sterling has already revealed that Kane is his inspiration and while the England skipper initially learned his trade by going on-loan, Pochettino feels Sterling stands to benefit more from staying in north London for now.
A place in the first team seems a fair way off still but if Tottenham want another home-grown striking option, Sterling could be the one a few years down the line.
