Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino has said that 17-year-old striker Troy Parrott could play against Colchester in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday night – and some fans are thrilled at the prospect.
Pochettino said that he takes all competitions seriously but added, “We are going to have a mix, we will assess the squad because we are going to have a very tough period and we need to manage the squad. We are going to be there trying to win the game.”
Asked if Parrott would play, Pochettino said, “Maybe, of course, he was at Leicester, but he wasn’t in 18 players. We will see.”
Parrott has been on fire recently, scoring three goals for the ROI Under-21s over the international break, and some Spurs fans are absolutely buzzing at the prospect of him making his first-team debut.
Here are the best reactions on Twitter:
An injection of youth tomorrow it seems.
Be the start for the likes of Tanganga and Parrott, and of course the highly rated Skipp.
4/5 years ago we had Bentaleb, Mason and Kane kick start Pochettino’s era at Spurs.
Maybe these guys could be part of the next chapter…#THFC
— Harry Hotspur (@HarryHotspurWHL) September 23, 2019
One fan said that it looked like Pochettino was set to unleash an “injection of youth tomorrow” against Colchester.
As well as Parrott, 20-year-old Japhet Tanganga could get his senior debut against Colchester and this fan asked whether “these guys could be part of the next chapter” at the club.
One player very likely to start is young midfielder Oliver Skipp. He made his debut in the Carabao Cup last season and has since made 14 appearances for the first team.
Do it!!!!!!
— JJ ???? (@JJcoda) September 23, 2019
https://twitter.com/BrendanGraham1/status/1176248837184327682
Parrott and Tanganga were left out of the Tottenham Under-23 squad last night – increasing speculation that they could be set for action in the Carabao tonight.
considering? lol it’s a must
— basicboy (@basicboy017) September 24, 2019
https://twitter.com/Tottenham_Talk_/status/1176230480846491649
Not wanting to put pressure on the lad but everything so far says natural finisher, but of course needs to operate at higher levels. We saw it in Harry maybe it is time to give him more exposure. Can you imagine if he comes through and we play 2 up front wow
— Lee Bryan (@whllee) September 23, 2019
https://twitter.com/PUR3FILTH/status/1176263087940395008
Some Spurs fans think that Pochettino should start Parrott, with one saying Harry Kane would be waiting on the sidelines as back-up if things went wrong.
On paper it seems like the perfect opportunity. Parrott might only be 17 but playing against a League 2 defence would give the young striker a great chance to get off the mark and take some of the pressure off breaking into the first team.
However, some fans urged caution. One said that the fans begging for Parrott to play would be the “same fans moaning that we didn’t take the competition seriously if we lose”.
Another said that he couldn’t see Pochettino starting Parrott, and perhaps coming off the bench is the most likely outcome for the youngster.
History concurs here. Last season, Skipp got his debut in the EFL Cup against West Ham, when he came on for six minutes.
The season before, Tashan Oakley-Boothe came on in the final minute against Barnsley in the same competition for his only senior appearance.
The clamour to play Parrott tomorrow will be the same fans moaning that we didn’t take the competition seriously if we lose. I’m happy to see Troy play but can’t then start turning the screw on Poch that he’s disrespecting the cups!
— Paul leech (@ojleech) September 23, 2019
https://twitter.com/Jordan_Forbes7/status/1176045228467326976
Excited to see these guys in action!
— Jamie (@JamieeeeF) September 23, 2019