Tottenham starlet Mikey Moore is not finding life easy in the Bundesliga, and he has now been sent a message by his Köln head coach.
A loan move to Köln was seen by many at Spurs as the obvious next step for Moore on the back of his outstanding displays at Rangers last term.
Tottenham fans would have been hoping that the 19-year-old enjoyed a breakthrough year like the one Luka Vuskovic did in Germany last term, and would be able to challenge for a first-team place at N17 on his return next season.
However, the winger is finding out that life in a top-five league is not as straightforward as it proved in Scotland.
Köln are hovering dangerously close to the relegation zone, and the teenager is yet to find the back of the net for his club in nine outings.
Rene Wagner tells Tottenham starlet Mikey Moore to remain ‘brave and confident’
Spurs Web relayed a report from Sport Bild last week claiming Moore’s loan spell at Köln is being seen as ‘a complete mess’ at the German club.
The outlet claimed the Bundesliga side expected the teenager to have a bigger impact and that there is a ‘sense of bewilderment’ over his lack of output in the final third.
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However, Rene Wagner has come to Moore’s support following his side’s 2-1 loss at home to Bayer Leverkusen on Saturday, calling on the youngster to continue to take risks and backing him to come good.
Wagner said about Moore (via Bulinews): “He needs to keep working to create these situations for himself and remain brave and confident.
“Then, sooner or later, he will be rewarded. You could sense that he wanted to be involved in the challenges today. He defended with passion and threw himself into every ball.”
International break comes at the right time for Moore
The Spurs academy graduate did not have the easiest of starts to his spell at Rangers last term, but came good eventually, and Tottenham will be hoping he does the same in Germany.
The two-week international break comes at the right time for Moore, who has received his first call-up to the England U21 squad.
The Young Lions face off in big games against France and Portugal over the next few days, and some good performances against those teams could help the Spurs man rebuild his confidence ahead of returning to Germany.