Spurs U18s will be the first to play at the Premier League club’s new stadium.
Tottenham Hotspur Under-18s captain Armando Shashoua has expressed his delight at the prospect to be part of the team to contest the first ever game at the club’s new stadium.
The Lilywhites’ scheduled Premier League game against Crystal Palace on 3 April is dependent on Spurs achieving a formal safety certificate during two test events to be held with increasing levels of attendances.
Tottenham’s Under-18s will become the first team to play in the new stadium as they host their Southampton counterparts in an U18 Premier League fixture on Sunday, a game expected to be viewed by approximately 30,000 spectators.
Shashoua is a veteran of the Spurs academy, having joined over 10 years ago, aged seven, and is now captaining the U18s side as an 18-year-old, playing his part in their unbeaten league run which has put them in contention for the title, as well as the run to the last 16 of the UEFA Youth League.
Upon finding out his side would be the first to play at the new ground, the midfielder spoke of just how elated and excited he was, and what it means for the club’s academy.
“It was one of the most exciting things I’ve heard since I’ve been at the club, and I’ve been here a while!” he told the official Tottenham website. “The stadium is there for us and for future generations.
“The club has invested so much into it and to be able to go there and experience playing there ourselves is something special. Every player in the academy has to believe they have a chance to progress and to be part of the first team one day, so to have this taste of what it means to play at the stadium is so important for us all. It’s so exciting.”
Following the Under-18s game, a Tottenham legends team coached by Gary Mabbutt and Clive Allen is due to take on their Inter Milan counterparts on 30 March in front of a crowd of around 45,000.
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