Marcus Edwards wants to stay at Tottenham and fight
Lost in the drama of Deadline Day at Tottenham was the courageous decision of Spurs’ starlet Marcus Edwards. Instead of accepting a move to a Championship side that would offer him significant playing time, the English starlet has elected to stay in North London and fight for a place in Mauricio Pochettino’s first team.
Some might criticize Edwards for being overconfident in his own abilities. The precocious 18-year-old midfielder definitely believes he has world-class ability. That can, of course, be a good and bad thing as it relates to his position at the club.
Perhaps if the club had successfully signed someone like Andre Gomes or Ross Barkley then things would be different. Acquiring a significant midfield talent like that would have made it virtually impossible for Edwards to earn meaningful playing time this season. However, the club’s inability to complete a deal for either star does leave him with a possible path to the first team.
At the moment, Pochettino’s starting midfield trio consists of Dele Alli, Christian Eriksen and Son Heung-Min. Edwards isn’t mature enough to break into the starting XI. There is, however, opportunity for the starlet to break into the next tier of attacking midfielders.
Marcus Edwards turned down loan moves to the Championship and Holland today because he wants to fight for a first-team breakthrough at #thfc
— David Hytner (@DaveHytner) August 31, 2017
The current group of potential reserves is made up of Moussa Sissoko and two injured stars. There’s no clear understanding of when either Georges-Kevin N’Koudou or Erik Lamela will return to full fitness. In particular, the Argentine’s path to the matchday squad is in serious question.
This is the group that Edwards needs to focus on competing with. He’s an underdog to pip any of them in Pochettino’s pecking order, but it’s not an impossible task. Knocking any of the trio out-of-the-way would give him a chance to earn significant playing time with the first team. At the very least, he’d be in line for serious playing time early on in Cup competitions.
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Ultimately, it’s Edwards confidence that gives him a chance to become a world-class star. If he were willing to move to the Championship, it would have been a clear sign that his self-belief was starting to waver. Fortunately for Tottenham fans, Marcus Edwards still believes he’s capable of helping the club win important matches this season. Time will tell if he’s able to make that improbable sequence of events a reality.