Alfie Devine set to leave Tottenham for Preston North End.
Alfie Devine’s Tottenham career is over in all but paperwork, with the 21-year-old undergoing a medical at Preston North End ahead of a permanent transfer worth up to £6m, as per Football London. Six years after signing as a 15-year-old, and despite becoming the club’s youngest-ever player and scorer against Marine in 2021, Devine leaves having made just two senior appearances.
There isn’t much to argue with here. Devine had an excellent loan season at Deepdale, starting 36 Championship games and earning serious interest from Celtic and Wolves before Preston moved decisively to keep him.
With Tonali and Fernandes now occupying the exact central midfield space Devine would have needed to break into and only 12 months left on his contract, staying and hoping was never a realistic option. This is pure profit on an academy graduate who simply ran into a crowded midfield at the wrong time.
Credit to Preston for backing their loanee with a club-record fee, and credit to Spurs’ academy conveyor belt for producing another player good enough to command that kind of money at Championship level, even if the pathway to N17’s first team never opened up.
Devine saw himself squeezed out by better midfielders arriving above him, and a permanent move to a club where he’s wanted and proven is simply sensible business for both sides.
Hopeful: keep an eye on Deepdale next season, because a player this highly rated by promotion-chasing clubs and a Scottish champion alike still has plenty to give.