Marcus Edwards, who was once compared to Lionel Messi by Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino, joined Portuguese side Vitoria on a permanent deal just before the close of the European transfer window earlier this week.
He made his only senior competitive appearance for Spurs as a substitute in the 5-0 EFL Cup third-round victory against Gillingham in September 2016, before suffering an ankle injury, which kept him out for around three months during the middle of the 2016/17 campaign.
The former England Under-20 international trained with Brentford earlier in the summer, while Italian outfit Udinese were also reportedly interested but a move failed to materialise.
Tim Sherwood has claimed that Spurs may live to regret the decision to offload the 20-year-old attacking midfielder and he has backed Edwards to rebuild his career in Portugal and find himself back at a top European club in the future.
Edwards has spent the last 18 months out loan; firstly at then Championship side Norwich City, where his deal which was terminated early after playing just six minutes over three months amid reports of poor behaviour, before a season-long spell at Dutch outfit Excelsior (Telegraph).
Sherwood told The Debate on Sky Sports Premier League on (03/09/2019 at 10:15 pm): “He’ll play in a way that probably doesn’t suit Tottenham at the moment. He’s an acquired tastemark. He’s not a big boy. He’s a little boy. Very technically gifted. He can play in a telephone box and you’ll never get the ball off him.
“If he was at Man City now, he could play in their tight spaces. You know when people sit back against them. That’s what’s he’s like. Now, he’s going to a team that’s struggling in Portugal. Fair play to Marcus, he’s decided to take that jump. But will he be able to express himself? If he does then he will move up the ladder and you will see him at a very big club because he has that ability.
“Do I back him to come back and play for a really top club? I really do. I have that belief in him and he needs to keep believing. But he needs to find a home. He’s probably made the right decision – it’s also a wake-up call for the teams. Will they be as quick to let these players go? Because they know they could go to the German’s, France or Portugal and they could come back and haunt them. So, you have got to make absolutely sure that this kid is not going to make it and come back and haunt you.”
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