Gary Mabbutt has claimed that Jose Mourinho has got to hand Dane Scarlett regular opportunities for the first-team at some point if the striker keeps playing as well as he has this season.
The 16-year-old has scored 13 goals in 12 appearances for Tottenham’s Under-18s this season while also netting two in four matches for the Under-23s (transfermarkt).
The striker has made three first-team appearances for Spurs this season, with his latest cameo coming in the North Londoners’ 4-0 win over Wolfsberger last Wednesday night.
Mourinho lavished praise on the youngster after he came off the bench against the Austrian side to pick up an assist with the Spurs boss admitting that he plans to promote the youngster to the first-team squad next season.
The Portuguese coach also compared the Spurs academy graduate to Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford, insisting that he sees him starting out as a wide-forward and evolving into a centre-forward.
When asked if he could see Scarlett featuring regularly for the Spurs first-team in the future, Mabbutt told Give Me Sport: “Yes, Dane Scarlett has scored twenty times already this season.
“So, of course, you’ve got to give him that chance in the first-team at some point.”
Spurs Web Opinion
It is important for fans not to get carried away and put too much pressure on Scarlett’s shoulders. He is still extremely young and it will likely take him at least another couple of years to stake his claim for a regular first-team spot.
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