Tottenham ‘insider’ John Wenham has backed Alfie Whiteman to be promoted to the first team after returning from his loan spell.
Whiteman joined Degerfors on a loan deal during the summer after Spurs signed Pierluigi Gollini on loan from Atalanta, with the club having the option to make the deal permanent for £13m.
Whiteman served as Degerfors’ number one, playing 13 matches for the club and has now returned to Hotspur Way after completing his loan spell.
It is unlikely that the Spurs academy graduate is going to get a look in the starting XI this season, with Hugo Lloris and Gollini above him in the pecking order.
However, Wenham has revealed that, thanks to Whiteman’s impressive performances at Degerfors, the goalkeeper could be earmarked for a first-team role at the club.
He claimed that Spurs may now send 22-year-old Brandon Austin out on loan to gain some experience and use Whiteman as the club’s third choice.
Wenham told Football Insider: “Alfie started pre-season really well for Tottenham’s first team.
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“He even saved a penalty up at MK Dons. I was under the impression that on the back of him starting those games, he would be our third-choice keeper for the season.
“However, over the summer, another youth keeper we had on loan Brandon Austin was on loan in the MLS.
“He came back and that allowed Whiteman to have his first chance to go out on loan. He should have been out on loan years ago but he stuck around for whatever reason.
“Then he moved to Swedish top division side Degerfors. He made 13 straight appearances for them now their season is over and I heard some good reviews.
“I think the next step is to send him out on loan or to send out Austin again and make Whiteman the backup. We have a lot of options for two talented keepers.”
Spurs Web Opinion
It is usually very difficult to find suitable loan moves for goalkeepers as the club must be sure that they would get sufficient game time. So Spurs did well to sell Whiteman to Degerfors and I am sure the 23-year-old would have learned a lot from his time in Sweden.
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