Mikey Moore forces Ange Postecoglou hand for Tottenham trip to Brighton
Tottenham youngster Mikey Moore continued to push his first first-team claims against Ferencvaros in the Europa League on Thursday (3 October).
Speaking on talkSPORT 2 with Ray Houghton (3 October), Alex Crook pointed out that the 17-year-old Spurs winger had been "really lively" throughout the first half following a "purposeful" run forward.
Moore started on the right-hand side of Postecoglou's front three against Ferencvaros, and saw out the full 90 minutes as the Lilywhites struggled to a 2-1 win amid awful conditions in Budapest.
Following another strong run from Moore in the second half, Crook said: "You can understand why Spurs fans are excited."
Mikey Moore development continues apace at Tottenham
Having already made four first-team appearances so far this season, Moore's involvement for Spurs' senior side is showing no sign of slowing in North London, with Postecoglou clearly a fan.
The 17-year-old certainly showed no lack of confidence against Ferencvaros, with both of his attempts on goal coming from well outside the box, contributing just 0.05 expected goals in the process [FotMob].
Moore did register 0.27 expected goals on target from his two long-range efforts, as well as 0.11 expected assists, creating a big chance for fellow youngster Will Lankshear in the first half.
Completing 80 per cent of the 41 passes he tried [FotMob], Moore completed five final-third passes and touches in the box apiece, but failed to find a man with any of his seven crosses and long ball attempts.
The youngster was certainly industrious though, chipping in defensively with three ball recoveries and enjoying success in six of his 14 duels in possession, while winning four free-kicks for Spurs along the way.
There's still a plethora of options ahead of Moore in the pecking order – namely the in-form Brennan Johnson – but at the rate he's progressing, the 17-year-old is becoming increasingly hard to ignore.
And with Brighton up next on Sunday (6 October), Ange Postecoglou now has a big decision to make.
In other Tottenham news, one of Moore's compatriots will have given Postecoglou headaches after his performance in Budapest.