Tottenham Hotspur are among the top flight clubs tracking Leicester City’s teenage sensation Jeremy Monga, but that would be a bad move for the player.
After emerging at the end of Leicester’s miserable Premier League campaign, Jeremy Monga has continued to establish himself as one of the brightest stars emerging in the game today.
He’s still only 16-years-old, but Monga has already made 11 appearances in the Championship this season, scoring one goal and registering one assist for the Foxes.
Predictably, Premier League clubs are now keen on signing Monga, with Man City, Chelsea, and Spurs among the interested parties. While all of those avenues pose a risk for the young winger, there’s one clear example at Tottenham that will have Monga thinking twice.
Jeremy Monga should look at Archie Gray situation as a warning
The truth is, Monga only has to look at the way Thomas Frank is misusing Archie Gray to see that joining Tottenham would be a mistake.
Gray arrived from Leeds United in a huge deal last summer, having just completed a full campaign in the Championship as a near ever-present for the Yorkshire outfit. While he had experience as a defender, Gray was widely regarded as one of the most promising central midfielders in England.
However, since joining Spurs, Gray has played just 11 times in his preferred position. The rest of his 52 appearances under both Frank and former manager Ange Postecoglou have come at right-back, centre-back, or even left-back.
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While it could be argued that Gray has still managed to play semi-regularly for one of the Big Six clubs and has won a trophy, there’s no denying it’s frustrating to see such a top talent being used out of position.
For Monga, an electrifying winger, there’s absolutely the risk that he could join a club like Spurs and end up being converted into a wing-back. Still, it could be worse.
Jack Clarke’s journey is also one Jeremy Monga would want to avoid
If Monga really wants to see what his future at Tottenham could look like in the worst case scenario, he should consider Jack Clarke’s time in North London.
Another top young talent, ironically also emerging from the Leeds academy, Clarke made waves in his breakthrough Championship campaign back in 2018/19. Along came Spurs with a £10m offer, but Clarke would only go on to make four senior appearances for the club in his three years there.
Loan spells at Leeds, QPR, and Sunderland were more useful, before a permanent move to the Stadium of Light really set Clarke’s career on the right track. There, Clarke proved he was one of the best players in the Championship, but once again was lured in by a Premier League move that didn’t work out – this time at Ipswich Town.
It’s all working out for Clarke now, but he is one of many young second tier talents who have been tempted by the bright lights of the Premier League, only to waste years of his career in the peripheries. Monga would do well to remember that, given he is so young, he should be in no rush to jump at the first big name that makes him a shiny promise.