Tottenham youngster Jamie Donley appears to be building a strong rapport with Roberto De Zerbi after impressing the Italian during pre‑season training.
Roberto De Zerbi has finally begun pre-season preparations, with Tottenham Hotspur‘s first game coming against MK Dons.
It was a match that saw Tottenham secure a victory after Mateus Fernandes let fly from outside the box, with his effort finding the top corner.
While the new signing certainly announced himself to the Spurs faithful in style and will have left De Zerbi pleased, the Tottenham boss will also have had his eyes on several other players who were on display.
Jamie Donley and De Zerbi appear to be building early rapport
Against MK Dons, De Zerbi fielded a balanced side that had a good mix of senior and academy players.
Also involved in the friendly were players who had spent last season out on loan and had only recently returned to Tottenham training. Several of those players have had the chance to impress De Zerbi, and one reported to have done so was Jamie Donley.
Donley, 21, was loaned out last season to Championship side Stoke City but struggled to make an impact, managing just 17 league appearances in which he scored one goal and registered two assists.
He was recalled and later loaned to Oxford United but still did not make any noteworthy impact.
After reportedly impressing De Zerbi in training, the 21-year-old took to his Instagram story to post a picture of himself shaking hands with the Spurs boss, accompanied by white heart emojis.
Donley earns spot in Spurs’ travelling squad
Donley‘s impressive displays have now earned him a place in Tottenham’s 35-man squad set to travel to New Zealand and Australia.
The midfielder will now be hoping to give a good account of himself over the remaining pre-season fixtures in a bid to force his way into the manager’s plans.
His performance against MK Dons, where he featured for 45 minutes, is surely another positive sign, with Donley receiving a 6.5 FotMob rating after recording:
| Statistic | Total |
|---|---|
| Accurate passes | 44/45 (98%) |
| Touches | 49 |
| Passes into final third | 2 |