John Wenham has hailed Jack Chapman for bringing this 17yo from Leeds.
Tottenham Hotspur’s decision to poach 17-year-old Oliver Boast from Leeds United’s academy last summer is looking increasingly inspired, with the teenager having delivered a remarkable debut season for the Under-18s that has generated significant excitement at Hotspur Way and earned widespread praise for the club’s youth recruitment operation.
Boast has scored 14 goals and provided four assists across 28 Under-18 appearances in his first season at Tottenham, building on a promising foundation at Leeds, where he had registered 10 goals in 20 appearances for their Under-18 side. The step up has not slowed him down. If anything, his development has accelerated, with his all-round play improving consistently throughout the campaign and his versatility across attacking positions adding further intrigue about where his best role ultimately lies.
Analyst John Wenham was effusive in his praise, reserving particular credit for Tottenham’s head of academy recruitment Jack Chapman for identifying and securing the teenager ahead of what would undoubtedly have been competition from other clubs. He said (h/t Tottenham News):
“Jack Chapman in recruitment has done a very, very good job so far in terms of bringing Oliver Boast from Leeds, who’s looking fantastic. Not only is he regularly scoring, he got two goals for the 18s versus Reading, but his all-round play is just improving a lot and I’m just wondering where his best position is going to be because he was signed as a striker but I’ve seen him play off the right and off the left and he’s looked good in both because of the way he can carry the ball. I just wonder if he’s going to go as a number 10 moving forward because he can pick up passes well, and he’s very determined. He looks a fantastic pick-up from Leeds.”
Wenham also highlighted another Chapman recruit in Oscar Sandiford, a right back signed from Crystal Palace for around £400,000, as further evidence of improving standards in Tottenham’s youth recruitment.
“I think it was around £400,000, and he looked really, really good as well. We are definitely getting better in recruiting young players.”
The point about positional flexibility is an interesting one in the context of De Zerbi’s recent comments about Archie Gray. The new head coach has spoken publicly about his desire to help young players find their most specific and effective position rather than spreading their focus too broadly. Boast, whose ability to carry the ball from wide areas while also functioning centrally as a number ten, presents exactly the kind of profile De Zerbi tends to relish working with.
A promotion to the Under-21 setup looks the natural next step, with a loan move to senior football likely to follow in due course. The pathway from academy to first team remains a long one, but Tottenham supporters have every reason to be excited about what Oliver Boast might eventually become.