Former player suggests Mauricio Pochettino’s comments have tarnished his career

Tottenham Hotspur finally parted company with young midfielder Marcus Edwards this summer when he completed a deadline day move to Portuguese side Vitoria.

The 20-year-old was regarded as one of the academy’s brightest prospects after being on the books since the age of six but after one senior appearance, found his future lay elsewhere.

Edwards made his Spurs debut against Gillingham in the League Cup during the 2016-17 campaign.

He was sent on loan to Norwich in January of this year, but featured just once for the Canaries, before his time at Carrow Road was cut short due to personal reasons.

The midfielder found a further first-team opportunity during a spell out on loan in Holland, where he made 25 appearances for Excelsior in the Eredivisie, scoring two goals.

Edwards is set to return to North London this evening with Vitoria for their Europa League fixture with Arsenal.

Ahead of the match, Edwards has claimed that Mauricio Pochettino’s comments comparing him to Lionel Messi (Sky Sports) and subsequently questioning his attitude (Football.London) have seen some people form a negative assumption of him.

He told The Times: “The negative stuff, that was a bit harsh. I get judged and that is not fair. That was the bit that was harsh and set off rumours as I did not show any authority issues. When Poch said it I was a bit confused as I did not show that. I had changed. When I went to Norwich it stuck. They kill you from there.

“It is a bit surprising, some of the things said. Some things have tarnished me. If you say something like that in the media, it gets blown up. It was a bit harsh, unfair. It used to stop opportunities for me. Clubs saying that they were not sure and don’t want to take the risk.”

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