Oliver Skipp of Tottenham in action (Getty Images)
Tottenham have made a bright start to the season and the Lilywhites currently sit 5th in the Premier League standings. They did not have the quality to challenge Liverpool as Mauricio Pochettino was without the services of some of his key players but the Lilywhites have put in some good displays this season. Barring that shock defeat at the hands of Watford at Vicarage Road, the team has barely put a foot wrong.
Undoubtedly, Tottenham have a lot of quality in their ranks as far as their first-team is considered. In fact, they boast of a starting eleven as good as Manchester City or Liverpool but they do not have the same depth in their squad to mount a serious challenge for the title.
Mauricio Pochettino was not keen on bringing new players in the summer but the set-backs that the team have suffered due to injuries should force the manager to reconsider his options in January.
Granted, Spurs have failed to grab big scalps in the transfer market over the past couple of seasons but it is definitely worth shifting the focus to their home-grown academy talent.
Harry Winks and Oliver Skipp are the names that come to the mind when we talk about Spurs’ academy talent. While the former has managed to make his first-team cut, the latter is yet to make his bow in the Premier League but was catapulted to the bench to act as cover for the injured Mousa Dembele.
At 22, Winks is definitely a more accomplished player in Tottenham’s ranks as compared to 18-year-old Oliver Skipp. Winks started the game against Liverpool but looked quite off the pace as most of Liverpool’s attacks came from his side of the pitch. He did not do any progressive with the ball and struggled to get into the game.
However, he was a lot better against Barcelona and looked quite comfortable in possession and was pretty accurate with his passing against a top-quality opposition. He caught the eye with his calmness and composure on the ball even though Spurs went down 4-2.
Winks returned to England colours in the UEFA Nations League tie against Spain and did a fine job to keep things ticking in the midfield with his impressive passing.
Quite evidently, he has been seen as a successor to Mousa Dembele who might be leaving next summer. To be honest, he has been good but there is still plenty of room for improvement if he wants to become one of the first names on the teamsheet.
Oliver Skipp, on the other hand, watched from the sidelines as Spurs beat Cardiff City 1-0. The 18-year-old was very impressive in the pre-season tour and had excelled in the 1-0 win over AC Milan.
Similar to Winks, Skipp is also a central midfielder who likes to operate from a deeper position in the midfield but does not hesitate to drive forward. In other words, he adds more fluency to the midfield and always seems to have that vision to have a progressive influence on the proceedings.
Skipp has earned rave reviews in the academy for his composure and confidence that belies his years. He doesn’t hesitate to go into challenges and wins the ball on most occasions. Furthermore, he is also more energetic and proactive than Winks. The 18-year-old also has a good range of passing and uses it to dictate terms in the midfield. He is also quite good with his positional sense and tries to close down the spaces in the central midfield.
As things stand, he is certainly below Winks in the pecking order but Pochettino might try him out in the domestic cup competitions. Oliver Skipp is a player with a huge potential and it won’t be surprising to see him push Harry Winks for a more significant role in the squad.