The real reason Mauricio Pochettino’s fountain of youth is drying up

Analysing the changing trend of Mauricio Pochettino’s reliance on young players.

Pochettino is one of the most revered coaches in the game when it comes to blooding young talent. He has never been employed by one of the big spenders and the impetus has always been on youth.

Poch is the kind of man who knows every name at a club. He regularly monitors training at youth levels; often departing some words of wisdom.

At Espanol Poch had youth teams play at an age level above to fast-track development. He clearly reaped the dividends of the unusual tactic as more than a dozen academy products made their debuts during his reign in Catalonia.

Poch only enhanced this reputation in England. At Southampton he promoted Calum Chambers to the first team and took the performances of youngsters such as Luke Shaw, Adam Lallana, Jay Rodriquez, Nathaniel Clyne, and James Ward-Prowse to dizzying new heights.

Pochettino at Tottenham

When Poch first arrived at Spurs it was the old guard that fled and the new generation that flourished. The Argentinean’s grueling double training sessions and high-octane football were simply more congruent with fresh minds and young legs.

The form of Harry Kane, Danny Rose, and Kyle Walker quickly propelled to a world-class standard and Spurs had one of the most exciting, young squads in world football.

Poch brought homegrown talents such as Ryan Mason and Harry Winks into the fold and, in total, has given debuts to 16 players under the age of 23 during his tenure at the club.

Poch’s development of young players stretches much further than simply chucking them in the starting XI – the most obvious case being Dele Alli. A 19-year-old Dele not only managed to mirror the form he had shown in League One but reached spectacular new levels almost instantaneously.

The two-time Young Player of the Year winner has been given an unwavering vote of confidence by the manager. Dele is a special and unique talent and Poch has allowed his game to naturally evolve from central midfield to attacking mid to second striker.

Equally as impressive is Poch’s public treatment of Dele whose name always seems to be courting the limelight. Poch vehemently defends his players and his paternalistic approach usually translates to leave-it-all-on-the-pitch performances.

Speaking to Soccer AM, Ryan Mason lauded the virtues of his old coach:

"“Probably the biggest thing I can say about him is that he didn’t just improve me as a player, he improved me as a human being. He just changed my view on life through his values.”"

Mason also believes that no other manager would have gifted him his chance so quickly:

"“I was playing for Swindon in League One six months before he came in but he didn’t care about that. . . There aren’t many managers around in the Premier League or even league football that would be able to see potential like that and then have the balls to develop it and be patient.”"

The English national side has been another major beneficiary of Poch’s fountain of youth. When Harry Winks put on the national shirt for the first time in October 2017, fifteen of England’s previous thirty debutants had come of age under Pochettino.

A shift in the trend

It’s been a couple of seasons since a youth player has had the opportunity to make any sort of mark on the Tottenham side.

Kyle Walker-Peters is probably the most unfortunate to be on the wrong side of the variance. The youngster’s natural athleticism coupled with Poch’s record of tutoring full backs seemed an inevitable recipe for greatness; however, despite more than ably deputising when needed he has largely been cast aside in favor of more established, albeit more erratic, alternatives.

There was also a curious summer exodus in the youth ranks to add to the disappointment of the club’s indolence in the transfer market. The most high-profile outgoing was Reo Griffiths who moved to Lyon. Griffiths was touted as a future star and roused fans’ interest after scoring four and assisting three in an U18s 9-0 victory over Arsenal.

Spurs also sold the highly rated Keanan Bennetts to Borussia Monchengladbach; while, 16-year-old Noni Madueke departed for PSV.

Reasons for the change

The reason is pretty simple: Spurs now play at a higher standard than Poch sides of bygone years.

Pochettino laid it out in black and white for Tottenham prospects:

"“If you were seven out of ten four years ago, you were going to have the possibility to play. But now we have said to them that they need to be an eight or an eight and a half. That is more demanding for them.”"

Notably, the aforementioned departees all signed for slightly less prestigious clubs where maybe sixs or sevens will get a game.

But Tottenham still have plenty of fledgling talent at youth levels. 18-year-old Oliver Skipp may be closest to the first team after impressing on Spurs’ pre-season tour of America. While, 16-year-old Irish sensation Troy Parrot and 18-year-old Tashan Oakley-Boothe are other names generating fanfare.

The real question will be if any of these players possess the voracious hunger to succeed akin to that of Kane or Winks. For Poch, the right attitude and lifestyle is paramount – especially now that the stakes are higher.

The ‘if you’re good enough, you’re old enough’ model may not have been scrapped; Tottenham are simply a much better and more cohesive unit than when Poch took over four years ago.