Tottenham's Youth-Promotion Policy Is Key to Transformation

Tottenham Hotspur’s starting 11 in the 5-3 thrashing of Chelsea had no less than four players who came through their academy system. Spurs famously splurged the profit from the sale of Gareth Bale on seven new players, yet it is their homegrown products who are now stealing the headlines. But is manager Mauricio Pochettino’s decision to make these players into the spine of the team a sensible way forward?

The ability of modern football clubs to nurture and promote talent is vital in order to achieve sustainable success. From Manchester United’s "kids" (Nicky Butt, David Beckham, Ryan Giggs, Gary and Philip Neville and Paul Scholes), Pep Guardiola’s "magic carousel" at Barcelona, through to the current Bayern Munich squad, incorporating academy creations is an essential pillar of becoming a great side.

It is very rare that an individual coming through the ranks of today’s top sides has an easy route to the first team.

Michael Owen was always earmarked to be a Liverpool great from a young age. The same can be said for Joe Cole at West Ham United, or Wayne Rooney at Everton. The passage for young Tottenham players has not been as simple as the above list.

Harry Kane is the personification of this new flow of talent, but the prolific forward has had to endure a series of loan moves and no small amount of criticism to reach his current status. Andros Townsend is another who has succeeded through pure determination and will. The England international also faced multiple loan deals, and it was at Queens Park Rangers that he proved he had enough ability for manager Andre Villas-Boas to give him his opportunity in north London.

Ryan Mason is another fine example. At 23 years old, most players would be considered as an outside bet to break into a Premier League side—Mason is now the engine room of Spurs’ resurgent line-up.

This willingness of a manager to throw young players into the fold is the fundamental element, the last great hurdle for all would-be wonderkids. Mason’s inclusion by Mauricio Pochettino away at Arsenal in September was fully deserved after his game-changing performance in the League Cup against Nottingham Forest—nevertheless it required a leap of faith.

Likewise, Nabil Bentaleb’s central-midfield starting berth in the cauldron of a north London derby in 2014 was a true baptism of fire—a sink-or-swim moment. Tim Sherwood’s confidence in a player whom he had nurtured at academy level has spawned an all-action international central midfielder. Sherwood was much maligned in his tenure as Tottenham manager, but his service as the club’s under-21 manager alongside Chris Ramsey forged the careers of the players who are now stepping up.

Rui Vieira/Associated Press

The benefits of youth players making the full transition into first-team regulars are manifold.

The first relates to money, in that the price of bringing through a player such as Harry Kane is vastly lower than the signing of a man such as Roberto Soldado.

The second reason also relates to finance, where the value of an individual who has cost a nominal amount to train, has the potential to make a club a huge profit should they move on.

The third benefit is the ease with which a promoted player takes in the first-team squad. They understand the ethos of the club, the desires of the supporters and do not require a settling-in period—they already know the geographic area and many of the players. The knock-on effect of this is that the fans take them to heart, are more inclined to be supportive and feel a real affinity with their progression. Just look at Harry Kane’s idolization in N17.

The final reason is the example player promotion sets. The successful assimilation of a club’s own products proves to hopefuls further down the ladder that there is a route to glory if they stay. Just take 17-year-old Josh Onomah, who made his debut in the 4-2 FA Cup victory against Burnley. 

He cites the first-team debut of fellow youngster Harry Winks (who came on as a substitute against Partizan Belgrade) as the motivation for his new-found success, as reported on the club's website (h/t TheTottenhamWay.com): "I was happy for Harry when he made his debut. It gave the rest of us in the U21s a boost and a sense of confidence. It helped us. I’m happy for him and hopefully he can carry on making appearances, just like the rest of us."

This faith and trust shown by a club also breeds a certain allegiance which is often hard to find in players who transfer into the first team. Onomah’s joy at his debut can be seen in his Twitter post, and it is this passion which creates the essential element of loyalty:

One potential downside of this process is a lack of experience if too many players are promoted together. Moreover, there is the risk that the individual is not ready, or does not have the ability to make the final step—for every Harry Kane there is a John Bostock.

The conveyor belt of talent runs deep at White Hart Lane and the quality of the club’s facilities give the youngsters the best chance of fulfilling their potential.

Manager Pochettino rates the Lillywhites' academy as potentially the best on the continent, as reported in The Telegraph: "It is important because the academy is always the heart of any club. It was one of the main reasons I decided to come here. The opportunity to work with this club’s academy was fantastic. I think it is the best in England, maybe even Europe."

With a proven trail blazed by the likes of Kane and Townsend, the future looks healthy for Tottenham, especially if the budding stars can produce goals like this from Nathan Oduwa:

The period of big spending to achieve success has failed at Tottenham. The new strategy of promotion from within has so far proved a shrewd decision, and Tottenham fans can expect to watch an exciting squad of players grow together over the coming years.