Tottenham announce playmaker deal – excellent move by Pochettino

Tottenham Hotspur have announced on the official website that rising star Marcus Edwards will spend the remainder of the 2017-18 campaign on loan at Norwich City, in what looks like a shrewd move by Mauricio Pochettino.

The 19-year-old attacking midfielder is viewed as one of the rising stars of the Spurs youth ranks, with the playmaker tipped to have a bright future at the North London club.

Pochettino’s lavish praise of Edwards, in which he called the teenager a ‘mini-Messi’, has only got the Tottenham supporters more excited about the attacker’s potential.

The Camden-born starlet, who was part of England’s victorious under-19 group at last year’s European Championships, was reportedly in demand in the summer but Spurs opted to spurn loan approaches.

However, with the likes of Christian Eriksen, Dele Alli, Son Heung-min and Erik Lamela ahead of Edwards in the Tottenham pecking order, a deal to send him to Norwich has now been agreed.

Ironically, it was the Canaries’ sale of former Spurs man Alex Pritchard to Huddersfield Town last week that freed up an attacking position in the Carrow Road squad.

For Edwards, it is an excellent opportunity for him to show the Tottenham hierarchy just how good he is in a competitive environment.

The 19-year-old has built his reputation by starring in youth sides but the playmaker needs experience in senior football to aid his development and help him to reach his potential.

Tottenham have put credence and faith in young players since Pochettino’s arrival at the club, with the likes of Harry Kane and Harry Winks coming through the youth academy and Dele Alli and Eric Dier becoming important players for the team.

The Spurs fans will hope that a number of the current rising stars will be brought into the first-team squad in the near future, with Edwards one of those in consideration.

With an over-reliance on the likes of Eriksen and Alli, Tottenham would surely welcome players like Edwards and Josh Onomah pushing for potential inclusion, which would deepen the squad in attacking areas next season.

As such, Pochettino’s decision to farm out Edwards to Norwich to potentially give him experience of senior football, rather than keep him within the Spurs ranks, could well be a piece of inspired business looking towards the future.