Mikey Moore returned to the Tottenham starting XI against Tamworth FC after two months on the sidelines
Tottenham Hotspur needed extra time to see off non-league Tamworth FC at Lamb Stadium in the FA Cup third round on Sunday.
Spurs were close to creating headlines for all wrong reasons by conceding in the dying minutes of the regulation time and going out to Tamworth FC. The defenders and new goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky did enough to earn extra time.
Then, when the likes of Son Heung-min and Dejan Kulusevski were introduced, the North London side’s quality was too much for their National League opposition. They got the job done eventually thanks to an own goal and strikes from Dejan Kulusevski and Brennan Johnson.
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One positive from the afternoon in Tamworth was the return of young Mikey Moore. The teenage prodigy only returned to the bench for the 1-0 Carabao Cup semi-final first-leg win over Liverpool last week after being out for almost two months with illness. With the need to rotate the squad, Ange Postecoglou handed him a start on Sunday.
When asked by the media about the return of Mikey Moore to the Tottenham squad, Ange Postecoglou stated in his post-match presser (h/t Football London):
“Yeah brilliant, great to get him some game time. I think he’s itching to get back as well. He’s missed a fair bit of football. It just adds another attacking threat to us and I’m sure after today he’ll feel a lot better. As I said, I think he was a bit rusty at the start but he definitely grew into the game.”
Moore started the game on the left flank and barely got going in the first half. It was quite obvious that the young talent was out since before Christmas with a bad virus, and so to see him being a bit rusty with the ball at his feet and movement was not surprising at all.
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After the break, the Southwark-born talent looked a different player altogether. He was adventurous, brave and tenacious, drove past the hosts’ defenders and put in some tantalizing crosses in the box before being substituted in the 68th minute.
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Big Ange had taken a big risk by naming Moore in the starting XI given he didn’t play a single minute in the last two months, but it eventually didn’t cause him any harm and the Tottenham academy graduate came off the game unscathed. The England under-19 international’s return after two unfortunate months out is a big plus, improving Big Ange’s options in attack to tackle the upcoming relentless schedule.
