Tottenham legend Gary Mabbutt has praised the recent form of Oliver Skipp and puts the performances down to the midfielder’s spell on loan at Norwich last season.
Skipp, 21, made 47 appearances for the Canaries in all competitions and played a vital role in securing the side’s promotion back to the Premier League.
He returned to Spurs in the summer and has since cemented a spot in the starting line-up alongside Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg.
The pair have been Antonio Conte’s go-to midfield duo since his arrival at the club, with their recent showings against Brentford and Norwich powering the side to consecutive wins and clean sheets.
Skipp was massively influential in Thursday’s London derby and wasn’t afraid to venture forward to join the attack and create chances for his teammates, despite his typical defence-first approach.
The same could be said against the Canaries, where Skipp broke up play for fun, picked positive passes and drove forward with the ball at his feet.
Spurs icon Mabbutt gave his verdict on Skipp’s display against the Bees in particular and was impressed with how he performed.
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Speaking on N17 Live, Mabbutt said: “I think Oliver Skipp has grown so much in stature and character since he went to Norwich. I think that’s been a fantastic loan period for him. I think he’s come back a lot better player, a lot stronger player.”
Skipp’s brief spell at Norwich provided him with the opportunity to secure regular first-team minutes on his journey to developing as a player.
Mabbutt feels as though Skipp’s time in the Championship has massively benefitted him in allowing a smooth transition into Premier League action.
He added: “If he’d have stayed here [at Tottenham], I don’t think he would be anything like the player he is at the moment.
“He got player of the season at Norwich, got them promoted. He’s a hard-working lad, he always wants to improve his game and you can see that during his spell at Norwich that he did grow in stature.
“That’s a huge benefit to us [Tottenham] and we’ve got a lot of players out on loan at the moment and all these players hopefully will be growing…it’s building them up to be better players and then hopefully we can bring them back when necessary.”
Spurs Web Opinion
Skipp has slotted in perfectly into the Spurs midfield and a lot of that can be down to his progression with Norwich. The Championship is a tough league and the fact he was a regular in the side provided him with such a solid platform to develop going forward. Hopefully, he continues to improve at the rate he is currently going at.
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