Tottenham teen Alfie Devine continues to prove to Ange Postecoglou he is ready for first-team football
Tottenham teen Alfie Devine is continuing to develop game-by-game during his loan spell with Port Vale, and Ange Postecoglou will be enjoying what he is watching.
Devine has taken to senior football like a duck to water.
The 19-year-old’s first major loan spell has been a shining success, and the midfielder looks set to return to Hotspur Way next summer as a man, having left as a boy.
Devine will have already turned 20 when the 2024/25 Premier League season gets underway, and Postecoglou will now surely be thinking of the youngster as a real first-team squad option for next year, especially if the Australian guides Spurs back to Europe.
More games next season will require more hands on deck, and Devine has proven so far this year that he is ready to rise to the big occasion, even if it is only EFL League One football he has been playing.
It was his goal in the Carabao Cup Round of 16 which truly showcased his credentials. His strike proved decisive as Port Vale defeated Mansfield 1-0 away from home to advance to the Carabao Cup quarter-finals for the first time in the club’s history.
Devine enjoyed himself in the competition before his side’s exit after a 3-0 home defeat to Championship outfit Middlesbrough in the last-eight.
He was the only player to have won multiple Player of the Match awards in the League Cup during his time in the competition, awards which came against Sutton United and Mansfield Town (WhoScored, 19 December).
While the festive period was disappointing for Port Vale as a club, as they drew away at Wycombe 1-1 on Saturday 23 December and lost 3-2 at home to Barnsley on Tuesday 26 December, on a personal level, Devine continued to impress.
Devine completed 100 per cent of his dribbles (two out of two), played one key pass, four accurate long balls forward and won four ground duels in the draw at Wycombe (Sofascore).
In the defeat to Barnsley, he completed 83 per cent of his passes, with two of those being key, won four ground duels, played 11 accurate long balls forward and made three tackles.
Although this is his first full season of senior football, you wouldn’t know it from his performances, which continue to showcase a mature and confident player who is playing ahead of his years.
With this in mind, Postecoglou will surely be tempted to hand the youngster a real opportunity at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium next season.
In other Tottenham news, the club’s women’s team can build on their recent success with two key stars set to return from injury in January.