John Wenham expects Tottenham trio Alfie Dorrington, Mikey Moore and Tyrese Hall to kick on
Tottenham News is delighted to welcome John Wenham of Lilywhite Rose as our exclusive columnist. Each week, he’ll be giving his expert insight on the biggest talking points at Spurs…
Tottenham Academy stars Alfie Dorrington, Tyrese Hall and Mikey Moore are ones to keep an eye on this season with Ange Postecoglou much more “in tune” with the academy than Antonio Conte was, according to John Wenham.
Under Conte, the development of many of the club’s talented young prospects was being hindered as pathways to the first team appeared blocked.
Postecoglou is now set to change that and will likely offer the club’s youngsters plenty of opportunities to show the Australian what they can do as he looks to bridge the gap between the youth teams and the senior side.
Wenham has suggested that there are three players, in particular, to keep a close eye on this season and has spoken of a “real buzz” around the academy since their first meeting with Postecoglou.
Speaking exclusively to Tottenham News, Wenham said: “I know for a fact that within the first three days of doing the job, Postecoglou got the Under-21s and Under-18s all together in the auditorium at Hotspur Way and basically told them that he will be watching their games, he’ll be finding out who they are, and he’ll be learning everything he can about them.
“I get the impression they (the players) came away feeling that even in that short meeting they had with him, he was far more in tune with learning about them and knowing who they were than anything they’d seen under Conte, and it gave a real buzz around the place.
“In terms of players I’m expecting to feature heavily for the Under-21s this year and potentially then get a chance to impress Postecoglou, the ones that stand out for me a little bit away from the obvious, you are looking at 18-year-old centre-back Dorrington.
“He was rewarded with a new three-year contract this summer, he is very highly regarded by Tottenham, plays in the England age group setups, has a fantastic physique to him, 6ft4 at the age of 18 and can carry the ball as well as being a dominant centre back.
“Then you’ve got young Tyrese Hall, who is a central midfield player, played mostly with the Under-18s last year but this summer has been training with the Under-21s. He is an attacking midfielder but can also cover the six and eight roles, so he is very versatile, and I think there is a lot to look forward to from him as well.
“And Mikey Moore, he was somebody that was wanted by a lot of the big clubs and Tottenham did everything in their power to keep him.
“He’ll be looking to obviously impress Ange and continue to get some game time for the Under-21s.”
In other Tottenham News, Wenham also believes that one “outstanding” youngster must go out on loan this season.