Tottenham Hotspur boss Mauricio Pochettino has discussed Marcus Edwards.
Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino has been quoted by Football.London as saying that youngster Marcus Edwards endured issues with the club last season.
Spurs have brought through talented youngsters under Pochettino’s guidance, with Harry Kane becoming a superstar, whilst Cameron Carter-Vickers, Kyle Walker-Peters and Harry Winks have also featured under Pochettino.
Given Pochettino’s track record for bringing through young players, more Tottenham talents should be emerging around the first team in the coming years.
One of the more exciting prospects in the Tottenham ranks is playmaker Marcus Edwards, who has been touted for stardom not only by fans, but also by manager Pochettino.
Edwards, 18, has featured for Spurs and England at youth level, and his remarkable dribbling ability prompted Pochettino to compare Edwards to Lionel Messi back in September 2016, as quoted by Sky Sports.
Edwards has featured just once for the Tottenham first team though, and whilst he signed a new deal over the summer, some fans were hoping that Edwards would be closer to the first team than he is right now.
Now, manager Pochettino has been quoted by Football.London as saying that he somewhat regrets comparing Edwards to Messi, suggesting that whilst he has all the talent, he needs to apply himself better in order to hit the target of becoming like Messi.
Pochettino, speaking about Edwards around the time of October 2016, suggested that the youngster had ‘authority and behavioural problems’, and there were concerns that he wouldn’t make the grade professionally, never mind in the Premier League, whilst an injury last year also set him back – but Pochettino still believes in the midfielder moving forward.
“Sometimes I wonder whether it was wise to liken him (Edwards) to Messi. He’s only 17. At that age, Messi was making his debut for a Barcelona side featuring Ronaldinho,” said Pochettino. “They’re from different families, backgrounds and cultures. One of them thinks like an Argentinian and the other like an Englishman. Marcus is still in the process of adapting to the rigours or being a professional, which require you to act and think differently, be disciplined and make sacrifices. He has authority and behavioural problems, and we have to look at the bigger picture to find out the root cause. There was a time when it would have been seen as impossible for him to play professionally, let alone make it in the Premier League.”
“Our challenge is to get him to accept the pathway we’ve laid out for him, and it’s our responsibility to make sure he behaves himself when he trains with the first team (with all the rules and obligations this involves). He has no shortage of talent, but there are gaps to be filled: he has to learn to score ugly, run more and be committed. The reason why I said that he was “our Messi” is because Leo is the target. Marcus needs to have the conviction that he can become a top professional and believe in the journey separating him from that destination. It’s a shame that injury has now halted that process,” he added.
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