Tottenham Expert reacts to ‘huge disappointment’ after what happened to Under-18s
Tottenham expert John Wenham has expressed his frustration after Spurs’ Under-18s were dumped out of the FA Youth Cup by Manchester City Under-18s.
Stuart Lewis’ side travelled to Manchester on Saturday 24 February to take on City in the quarter-final of the prestigious youth competition.
Midfielder Tyrese Hall gave the visitors the lead in the 61st minute and it looked as if his goal would be enough. However, Luca Fletcher’s equaliser in the 83rd minute followed by Jacob Wright’s 89th-minute winner saw City progress at the expense of Spurs.
It was a tough result to take for Tottenham’s youngsters, and Wenham has shared what he thinks went wrong for the Under-18s that day.
Speaking exclusively to Tottenham News, Wenham said: “That result really annoyed me because Spurs were winning 1-0 for such a long time in that game. The difference in the end was Manchester City had a much stronger bench that they could turn to.
“They made five substitutes, and two of those substitutes made a huge difference in the final goal scored to win them the game. Meanwhile, Lewis felt he could only make one substitute.
“It was a huge disappointment, Spurs were without Mikey Moore as well, who would have been the best player on either team had he been there, so to have him not playing was a big blow.
“I felt we had an excellent chance in the FA Youth Cup this year, I’d seen Chelsea go out the night before against Millwall, Arsenal and Manchester United had both already been eliminated, so it would have been a really good chance to win the competition.
“I’m sure my disappointment is shared throughout the club.”
Tottenham Under-18s must bounce back from FA Youth Cup exit to Manchester City Under-18s
Spurs’ youngsters would have been understandably deflated on their coach journey back to North London that afternoon.
It felt as if the team had a really good chance to go all the way this year after their positive form in the Under-18 Premier League South.
Unfortunately, it wasn’t to be, and the players must now show their character by responding to the defeat with a strong end to the 2023/24 season.
It has been a fantastic campaign for Spurs’ Under-18s, who sit third in the Under-18 Premier League South, and Ange Postecoglou and the coaching staff at Tottenham will now be interested to see how this group of players bounce back.
A big part of being a professional footballer is picking yourself up after a frustrating loss, and Spurs’ Under-18 players must show that they are up to the task and have what it takes to make it at the highest level.
In other Tottenham news, ex-Spurs scout Bryan King has shared the one thing he is “fed up with” about Postecoglou.
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