Incredible footage of Tottenham Under-16 training session emerges following Yaya Toure exit
Yaya Toure may now have left Tottenham but footage shows Spurs’ Under-16 players being put through possession-based drills prior to his departure.
Toure recently left the Spurs academy set-up to take on the role of Standard Liege assistant boss ahead of next season.
And the Belgian side clearly have a talented coach on their hands, which is proven by exclusive footage from a training session the former Manchester City midfielder took his players through in May. His demanding yet positive approach to training shows the quality of coach he is and the loss his departure represents for Spurs.
The footage was exclusively filmed for CV Academy and the drills within the videos are designed to teach Spurs’ young stars the principles behind creating chances and maintaining possession under high pressure from the opposition.
Supported by Spurs youth-development-phase lead coach Joe Staunton, the session begins with basic passing practice drills before moving onto an eight-versus four-possession match.
The session ends with a five-a-side match played with regular goals, but on a compressed pitch, with the conditions forcing players to think outside of the box in order to create space to get their shots away.
Through the session, the players are taught the principles of adopting the right body position in order to receive and pass forward, finding space and getting the ball out of their feet quickly – all things that Toure was excellent at during his playing days.
Within the exclusive footage, Toure reveals a personal insight into his man-management approach.
“Be patient, be calm, and understand it’s a learning development for them. You have to give them the sense that you appreciate working with them and they have to feel that from you,” Toure said.
“In that sense, the more they trust you, the more they give you, the more they work hard.”
It is clear Toure is destined for great things as a coach, just as he was as a player, and it is a shame Spurs couldn’t keep hold of the 40-year-old.
In other Tottenham news, despite this loss, the club’s academy recorded a victory elsewhere.