Why Emmanuel Okuwa could go on to become a future star at Spurs
According to The Sun, Spurs have completed the signing of Nigerian wonderkid Emmanuel Okuwa from London rivals West Ham.
The 14-year-old was a part of the youth setup at West Ham for the past nine years but decided to move across the capital this summer.
Okuwa trained with both Chelsea and Spurs before deciding to further his development at the latter, where he will be a part of the club’s U-14 team for the ongoing campaign. (h/t Sun)
The news regarding the teenager’s arrival at the club is likely to have gone under the radar, especially after the Lilywhites came out of their regular habits to spend big earlier this summer.
Spurs, though, should be happy that they managed to beat off stiff competition from their London rivals in the race to land the youngster’s signature.
The 14-year-old is very much in the rudiments of his footballing career but the Lilywhites apparently believe he has got what it takes to accomplish his dream of playing at the highest level.
Okuwa, who is capable of playing in multiple positions across the backline and also as a holding midfielder in front of the defence, has demonstrated a level of maturity that belies his tender years as a footballer, with several coaches at the youth level labelling him as someone with the potential to go on and carve out a big name for himself in the future. (h/t Sun)
The Nigerian is yet to play professional football of any kind, which is hardly a surprise, given that he is just 14.
However, he has shown signs of developing rapidly and a professional debut for the teenager four or five years down the line is certainly not beyond the realms of possibility, provided he continues his development in the right direction.
Well, Spurs’ much-altered stance in the market this summer might be an indication of a change in the transfer policy at the club but it is worth mentioning here that a lot of their success in recent years has been down to their blooding of academy players.
The rise of players like Harry Kane, Harry Winks, Kyle Walker-Peters, Eric Dier and Oliver Skipp lie testament to the amount of hard work that Spurs have put into their youth system.
Troy Parrot is another burgeoning young talent in the academy who has been tipped to replicate the heroics of Kane in the senior ranks, meaning that the fans can be assured that the club is definitely moving in the right direction.
And Mauricio Pochettino’s Midas touch to transform little-known rookies into top-quality stars continues to be one of the Spurs’ biggest assets.
The Argentine’s failure to bring silverware to the club has been overshadowed by the kind of magic he has worked with the youngsters coming through the academy ranks and Okuwa’s decision to snub Chelsea for Spurs certainly looks justified.
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Okuwa,14, still needs a lot of polishing before he is eventually ready to make the step up to the senior level and Spurs will be hoping for him to go on and fulfil his potential in the years to come.
All in all, it is easy to see that signing the teenager is, indeed, a step in the right direction for the club.