“The younger boys”- Tottenham academy starlet names Harry Winks his “personal idol”

Tottenham Hotspur’s Matthew Craig names Harry Winks as “personal idol”

Speaking in an interview as quoted by The Times (Subscription Required), Tottenham Hotspur academy starlet Matthew Craig named Harry Winks and Oliver Skipp as his personal idols.

The 19-year-old Spurs U21 midfielder is yet to appear for our senior team. However, he has been a regular for our youth sides and made 63 appearances in all competitions at various youth levels.

Matthew has an identical brother, Michael, who exited Tottenham earlier this year and then joined Reading’s U21 side. As for Matthew, he remains at Spurs and is eager to make his debut for Scotland U21, who take on Northern Ireland’s U21 side in a friendly later today.

The midfielder named Winks and Skipp as his idols at Spurs, which shouldn’t come as a surprise to many considering what the duo have achieved after playing for the club’s academy. The former left for Sampdoria on a season-long loan this summer.

Winks and Skipp an inspiration

Skipp, meanwhile, missed the start of the season due to a nasty injury he picked in training but manager Antion Conte has promised to use the 22-year-old midfielder in his XI in the near future.

Craig said:

“As a personal idol, I looked towards Harry Winks before he left on loan and Oliver Skipp because they progressed from the academy into the first team and that’s a great inspiration for me and the younger boys at Spurs.”

Skipp had to impress in the academy before getting his debut in an EFL Cup game against West Ham United under manager Mauricio Pochettino. He came on as an 84th-minute substitute in that game in a 3-1 win in October 2018.

A loan move to Norwich City took place in the summer of 2020, and after a season with the Canaries in the Championship, Skipp more or less became a regular part of our matchday squads. Winks, 26, is quite far along his development curve as compared to Skipp and Craig.

He has 203 appearances for Spurs’ senior side, including the one in the UEFA Champions League final against Liverpool in 2019. His loan move to Sampdoria is the first such transfer of his career, and he has spent the entirety of his pro career on our books.

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Hence, it is no surprise that Craig wants to emulate his success. Being a senior player for Tottenham and amassing over 200 appearances is no easy task, after all.