Tottenham Hotspur have been here before.
Cast your mind back to the summer of 2019. During the club’s pre-season tour, excitement was blossoming around Troy Parrott after the 17-year-old caught the eye against the likes of Juventus and Manchester United.
Was this another Harry Kane situation? Well, not quite.
While certainly not helped by the departure of Mauricio Pochettino and the arrival of Jose Mourinho, Parrott now leaves Tottenham on a permanent basis five years later, having made only two brief Premier League appearances for the London giants.
So as the likes of Lucas Bergvall, Will Lankshear and Mikey Moore make their mark during the pre-season tour of 2024, those Spurs fans felt Parrott would follow in Kane’s footsteps could be forgiven for adopting a ‘once bitten, twice shy’ approach.
But things feel different these days.
The masterful Bergvall chose Spurs over Barcelona and looks ready for the rigours of the senior game already. Lanskhear has scored twice this summer. Two more than Parrott managed back in 2019.
The noise surrounding Mikey Moore, meanwhile, appears to suggest that – while Parrott ended up in the Eredivisie with AZ Alkmaar – the Southwark-born 17-year-old is the real deal indeed.
Big excitement about Tottenham Hotspur’s Mikey Moore
Tottenham tied the dazzling Moore down to a three-year professional deal this week. Thus, seeing off interest from the likes of Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain, HITC understands.
And Chris Waddle is the latest Spurs icon to express his excitement about a player who is already putting together quite the collection of stunning solo goals at youth level and may soon be ready to graduate to a bigger pond.
“I am not sure about Tottenham. They needed (new £65 million striker Dominic) Solanke but it is hard to judge them off pre-season, because they were without a few regulars,” Waddle tells BBC Sport.
“Instead, Ange (Postecoglou) has been using some young players who have come through the academy. One of them, Mikey Moore, looks like he will be part of the first-team picture this season which is a good thing.”
Harry Redknapp, the former Spurs coach, sees shades of a teenage Wayne Rooney or Joe Cole in Moore.
Postecoglou, meanwhile, feels that Moore has not only the talent but the mentality to cope with all the attention coming his way.
Ange Postecoglou full of praise for teen talent
“It’s fair to say, it’s incredible that he’s 16 turning 17,” the ex-Celtic boss tells Football London. “He handles it really well, and that’s part of the process when you’re a young footballer if you’re going well.
“We can’t protect him from all of it. But he’s been great.
“He’s come back pre-season and done really well in the games and in training. It’s great for this football club that’s come through our academy and is already showing great promise.
“But he’s a young man. Our role is to have the best possible environment for him to be the best footballer he can be.”
Tottenham kick off their Premier League campaign away at newly-promoted Leicester City on Monday night. Moore may have a place in the matchday squad alongside Bergvall, Lankshear and the £35 million summer signing Archie Gray.
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