Credit: Imago/Tottenham Hotspur Academy on X

James Barker

Sat 30 May 2026 8:10, UK

Yusuf Akhamrich enjoyed a fruitful loan spell with Bristol Rovers last season, surely laying the groundwork for a pre-season opportunity at Tottenham Hotspur this summer.

The 20-year-old forward has been developing through Tottenham’s academy system for a number of years now, but is yet to make his first-team debut for Spurs.

Having previously been limited to youth team football, the Lilywhites decided to afford Akhamrich with the opportunity to go and source some senior minutes away from North London last winter.

League Two outfit Bristol Rovers would be the Moroccan youth international’s destination, in what would be a fascinating test of where he’s at in his development.

What Akhamrich showed at the Memorial Stadium will no doubt have caught the attention of Tottenham, as Spurs now look towards their summer pre-season friendlies in July.

How did Yusuf Akhamrich fare with Bristol Rovers?

Akhamrich has been tipped for Tottenham stardom for some time now, having produced some impressive performances and campaigns in the academy.

However, it’s one thing playing well in youth football, but it’s a completely different ball game at the senior level, especially down in the fourth tier of English football.

Down there, defenders are rough and physical who don’t always take kindly to young, tricky forward players, the pitches aren’t carpets and the fans are right on top of the action.

In short, it can prove to be a huge learning curve for young loanees, and particularly ones coming from Premier League sides where they’ve perhaps been pampered more than many players turning out at that level.

For Akhamrich, however, the Tottenham talent didn’t appear to have too many issues handling all of that, scoring six goals and providing one assist from 19 League Two appearances after signing for Rovers in late January.

Two starts. Three goals ⚽️⚽️⚽️

Not a bad start to life at Bristol Rovers for Yusuf Akhamrich 🤷‍♂️

No forward won more GW27 points (24) 🥇#FantasyEFL | @Official_BRFC pic.twitter.com/YyIEVJk4Qw

— Fantasy EFL (@FEFLOfficial) February 3, 2026

As per FotMob, no right winger – the position FotMob lists as his primary one – in League Two registered more shots on goal per 90 than Akhamrich’s 4.21 last season.

Meanwhile, he also ranked in the top three percentile for shots on target per game with 1.40, as well as the leading 6.8 per cent of his positional peers for successful crosses at a 37.5 per cent success rate.

Akhamrich ended his loan spell with the Gas having averaged 0.56 goals per 90, completed 1.59 dribbles per game with a 75.8 per cent passing accuracy to crown his campaign off.

Why Akhamrich is nailed on for Tottenham pre-season minutes

This upcoming summer is going to be a period of significant change in N17, with Roberto De Zerbi undoubtedly looking to put his stamp on the Tottenham side.

Whilst the majority of that will come via ins and outs on the transfer front, the forward-thinking and shrewd tactician may also dip into Spurs’ youth system to unearth a few gems as well, and Akhamrich could be one of those.

Not only should the youngster be a lock-in for pre-season opportunities over the coming weeks thanks to his Bristol Rovers form, but the sheer volume of first-team injuries in attack may leave De Zerbi with no choice but to call his number.

Mohammed Kudus, Wilson Odobert, Xavi Simons and Dejan Kulusevski respectively are all dealing with major injuries, whilst Randal Kolo Muani returns to parent club Paris Saint-Germain.

Unless another loan move is arranged for him before their pre-season camp begins, then Lilywhites fans can expect to see Akhamrich involved in the first-team ahead of the 2026-27 season.