Tottenham’s record-breaking new signing on verge of joining first-team training as loan decision made
Tottenham teenager Mason Melia is set to remain in N17 beyond Monday’s 7pm transfer deadline.
Melia signed for Tottenham in February 2025, as Spurs made him the League of Ireland’s most expensive ever player in a £1.6million deal with St Patrick’s Athletic.
A 17-year-old at the time, Melia was understood to have held meetings with then-Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou, who helped convince the striker to sign for the Lilywhites.
The Republic of Ireland youth international is one of the brightest young prospects in Irish football for many years, and is tipped for a big future ahead of him.
Tottenham outline first-team Mason Melia plan as loan call made
With Dominic Solanke picking up a slight knock against Man City, and with Randal Kolo Muani’s future up in the air ahead of Monday’s deadline, Thomas Frank could see his centre-forward options stretched thin.
However, with Melia being signed under the previous regime, it has remained unclear as to how highly Frank rates the young Irishman.
Melia fired home 15 times in 44 total appearances for St Patrick’s Athletic in his final 2025 season with the Dublin-based outfit, which helped to truly affirm himself as a top talent.
But, having only officially joined Tottenham from 1 January this year, he’s still yet to make his competitive debut for Spurs.
He did arrive in N17 already suffering from a back injury though, but as revealed in an X post by Football.London reporter Alasdair Gold on Monday, he’s now on the verge of returning to fitness.
Gold also reports that Tottenham aren’t expected to send Melia out on loan before the window closes, as they are hoping he will start getting involved with the first-team.
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Melia plan could explain Spurs’ Dane Scarlett exit
On Friday, it was announced that Dane Scarlett has joined Hibernian on loan for the remainder of the season, after making just five first-team appearances this season.
The 21-year-old has largely been an unused substitute for Spurs this term, and it now looks as though his role is set to be given to Melia.
With Scarlett being three years older than Melia, he doesn’t have the same luxury of time to largely sit on the bench, as he will want to really kick-start his career now.
Whereas with Melia, getting him involved around the first-team matchday squads could be a really valuable experience for him, even if it largely consists of making up the numbers for now.
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