Ranking the Top 5 Teenagers to Have Played for Tottenham Since 2000
Tottenham can proudly claim the youngest team in the Premier League this season.
Many of their most important players, including Harry Kane, Eric Dier and Dele Alli are only at the outset of their professional careers.
Spurs are historically unable to match the biggest clubs in England and around Europe when it comes to player acquisition. Instead of buying the best, Tottenham have instead often brought in talented youngsters with big potential.
This strategy has meant that they've usually fielded a number of younger players in their senior squad.
Since the year 2000, many young stars have shone in Spurs' first-team, but which five can make our list?
For our purposes, the player must have been a regular in the starting lineup before age 20 to be considered. Harry Kane had only made seven senior appearances before the age of 20, while Danny Rose and Kyle Walker had played just once each.
None of those players will feature here.
Reto Ziegler
1 of 5
Reto Ziegler is a name that has been largely forgotten by most Tottenham fans, but he shone briefly in a period when Spurs had little to smile about.
The club finished ninth in Ziegler's only season at the club, 2004-05, but contributed a few bright moments and showed great promise. He assisted Freddie Kanoute's late goal in the famous 5-4 defeat to Arsenal and scored a tap-in in a 5-2 hammering of Everton.
Ziegler didn't hit the heights of other players on this list, but he was playing in a far weaker team and played above many of his older teammates.
Since leaving Spurs in 2007, he has played all over Europe and at two World Cups with Switzerland.
Tom Huddlestone
2 of 5
Tom Huddlestone's Tottenham career is, upon reflection, rather peculiar.
Arriving as a highly touted youngster from Derby County in 2005, he was immediately sent on loan to Glenn Hoddle's Wolves. Hoddle raved about Huddlestone's passing game and, upon his return to Spurs, his talent was obvious.
At his best, Huddlestone was a sensational player.
Capable of playing any pass first-time and possessing a remarkably powerful shot, Huddlestone should have become the backbone of Spurs' side. From his earliest days, it was clear he had the talent to play at the highest level, but fitness and weight issues slowed his progress.
Harry Redknapp eventually got the best out of Huddlestone in the 2009-10 season when his routine excellence played a major role in securing Champions League football for the first time.
Huddlestone was even selected in the preliminary England squad for the 2010 World Cup but suffered injury in a friendly against Japan.
That injury stands out as a real sliding-doors moment for Huddlestone. At the level he was playing, he would have been selected to travel to South Africa and returned to spearhead Spurs' European campaign. Instead, he missed the World Cup and played just 36 Premier League games over the next three seasons as his injury problems stubbornly refused to abate.
Huddlestone briefly reached a level of excellence that Tottenham's midfield hadn't seen for decades.
With the likes of Sandro and Eric Dier having since replaced him, it is easy to forget what a revelation Huddlestone was in the mid-2000s.
Gareth Bale
3 of 5
Gareth Bale didn't play on a winning Tottenham team in the Premier League until he was 21, but he had already shown enough in his earliest appearances to hint at special talents.
Arriving from Southampton as a teenager with a big reputation, Bale hit the ground running.
In just his second game for the club, Bale scored his first goal. He showed huge confidence in his own abilities, neglecting to pass to an unmarked Dimitar Berbatov and instead shooting for goal himself.
Bale then opened the scoring in the north London derby with a well-placed free kick. Spurs eventually surrendered the lead and were beaten 3-1, but Bale had once again underlined his potential.
The injuries that blighted his early years at Spurs meant that only these brief flashes of brilliance shone through, but Bale was always going to be a star.
Aaron Lennon
4 of 5
Aaron Lennon was one of a number of players whom Tottenham picked up during Leeds United's pre-relegation fire sale.
As the other Lilywhites collapsed under the weight of financial obligations, Spurs swooped in for their talented young winger.
Lennon immediately became a first-team regular and impressed with his lightning speed and acceleration. His stutter step and burst of pace terrified opposition full-backs, and he was a constant threat.
Never prolific, Lennon did score the winner against Chelsea in 2006, ending Spurs' 16-year wait for a victory against the Blues.
He was nominated for the PFA Young Player of the Year award in each of his first two seasons at White Hart Lane.
Sadly, a career that promised so much rather stagnated, and Lennon was eventually exiled to the reserves and sold to Everton. Nevertheless, only one teenager has shone nearly so brightly for Tottenham in recent years.
Dele Alli
5 of 5
Dele Alli is the most exciting English teenager since Wayne Rooney, so there is no surprise that he finds himself at the top of this list.
Alli has enjoyed an astonishing first season in the Premier League while simultaneously endearing himself to the fans with his amusing off-field antics.
On the pitch, Alli has outscored all English midfielders this season with eight goals.
He has established a prolific partnership with sharp-shooter Harry Kane, laying on seven goals for his England teammate.
In total, Alli has 13 goals and nine assists in 39 appearances for club and country this season. That's a goal contribution in every other game.
From the sublime volley against Crystal Palace to the tenacious follow-up opener against Norwich, Alli has contributed in virtually every situation.
He also puts in a shift every time he's on the pitch, regardless of his influence on the scoreline. A determined runner, aggressive tackler and more disciplined than any teenager could fairly be expected to be, Alli is a superstar in the making.
