Premier League rivals beat Nottingham Forest to sign record-breaking wonderkid
Nottingham Forest have missed out on the signing of talented 16-year-old Glentoran striker George Feeney after Spurs saw off competition from across the Premier League to sign the youngster.
Forest were interested in the teenager who became the Northern Irish side's youngest ever goalscorer in their history in October last year when, as a 15-year-old, he netted with an excellent effort in the second half of Glentoran's BetMcLean Cup first round victory against Dollingstown.
Feeney has been the subject of an international tug of war between the football associations of Northern Ireland and Wales, who both want him in their international pathway.
Feeney became a regular around the Glentoran first squad last season and played senior league football despite his age having scored plenty of goals for the East Belfast club's young reserve team across the campaign.
football.london reports that Tottenham saw off interest from Brighton, Brentford, West Ham, Crystal Palace and Forest to sign the teenager for a fee that is expected to include add-ons to benefit Glentoran in the future. The forward will arrive at the north London club next week and will be announced in the coming intake of new academy scholars, which is normally released to the public early in July each year by the club.
The talented young forward, who turned 16 in January, comes from a long line of international football heritage and is the son of former Notts County assistant manager and Northern Ireland striker Warren Feeney, who managed him at Glentoran. George was born in Newport which meant the teenager has played for both Northern Ireland and Wales at U16 level international as well as at U17s for the former and both countries are believed to be keen on taking the pacey, clinical young striker into their fold.
If Feeney was to become a senior international one day then he would become the fourth generation of his family to do so, following his father Warren, grandfather Warren Snr and great grandfather Jim.
There is set to be a certain symmetry in the teenager's career as he will go initially into Spurs' successful U18s side, which is coached by Stuart Lewis along with Bradley Allen and Jermain Defoe, who Feeney's father Warren played alongside at Bournemouth in 2001, while on loan from Leeds United.
That was later in a season in which a teenage Defoe, on loan himself from West Ham, had already scored in a record-equalling ten consecutive matches, so the England international should be able to impart plenty of knowledge to the younger Feeney looking to make his mark in the game in the months and years ahead.
