Mauricio Pochettino has revealed Troy Parrott still has some way to go before breaking into Tottenham Hotspur’s first-team squad.
The Argentine stated that the Republic of Ireland Under-21 international would be working with their developmental squad whilst he also admitted he would train with the senior side at moments throughout the season.
“The best way to help him is to be calm and relaxed about him. If he’s going to be involved, perfect. If he’s going to be involved with the U23s instead, perfect. Sometimes he’ll train with us, good,” Pochettino told Football.London.
Parrott’s stock has certainly been rising recently and his recent performance for his country will only have intensified the hype surrounding the 17-year-old.
The young striker has bagged himself three goals in his first two appearances at the Under-21 level for his nation, whilst he has been in fine form for Tottenham’s developmental side as well.
The teenager fired home two goals in his first Premier League 2 appearance for Spurs this season when they ran out 3-1 winners against Manchester City’s youngsters (Transfermarkt).
Although Pochettino’s comments make complete sense on the surface, as it will be extremely important for him to bring the player through in the correct way and not rush his development, things can quickly change in football and Parrott’s services may be needed.
Tottenham have Harry Kane as their only established centre-forward and the England international has had his injury troubles in recent seasons. According to data collected by Transfermarkt, the 26-year-old has had to miss 21 games in the last two campaigns with a variety of different problems.
A recent report by Football Insider claimed Tottenham were set to fast-track Parrott into the first-team, but Pochettino’s comments appear to suggest that that scenario will not happen in the imminent future.
The Argentine is right in that it is a process and that it needs to be relaxed, although, because of his limited options in attack, there may be a time when the manager will need to call upon him even if he feels he is not quite ready for the fixture in question.
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