YouTube is, um... it still has it's uses, but not so many for the average football supporter. Here's a new-ish site for clipping out clips as GIFs: Take your link - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sOpSytJLqOQ add gif before youtube - https://www.gifyoutube.com/watch?v=sOpSytJLqOQ Play around. Refresh the page if it stalls. No sign up. Free hosting. Very nice. please log in to view this image
Great news that Tom Carroll has gone on loan to Swansea, didn't want him festering in the reserves. Let's hope he gets some game time, Swansea play a game which should suit him.
My gut feeling is that we won't see him in a Spurs shirt again. Anyway, I hope this move works out for the player, although I am not sure he will learn too much from Monk who is way out of his depth managing in the PL.
"My gut feeling is that we won't see him in a Spurs shirt again." With Eriksen and Lamela being of the same age as Carroll, this was always going to be a potential issue. Pritchard is probably on paper in the same boat. When you consider the main front 6 combos of the 2012-13 U21s, only Townsend and Kane have got a foot-hold in the seniors. Luongo/Parrett/Munns have gone. Obika seems to be around only to satisfy over U21 HG quotas. Carroll and Ceballos probably have this season as their last chance. Pritchard is still in the balance. Is that to be deemed an acceptable progression rate for the Academy ??
Carroll may get more of a shot at Swansea than he has at WHL so far, but I still can't see him walking into their first XI, by any means. Their style of football will suit him well, but he really needs game time. I guess that's the problem. He won't start for anyone who he'd be suited for. Hope he does get an opportunity and grabs it.
Swansea where the club I've always mentioned as the ideal club for Carroll (if he wasn't with us) but this move came out of the blue, as I'm surprised Monk was looking at him, yet possibly its more swanseas technical/recruitment team have been keeping an eye on him for awhile now as he does fit into their style of play/philosophy and can replace players like Joe Allen/Lean Britton so there is hope, but its up to Tom now. This is his chance to prove he can make it at this level. Carroll is the type of player who needs to be at a club which is a "good fit" if thats swansea then hope it works out and he moves on, as they are a fab club with a great set of fans who appreciate the passing game.
If Carroll gets enough game time at Swansea, then either way we will know whether he has a future at Spurs. Another loan to the league below seems pointless. Similarly for keeping him this season when at most he would get about 10 starting XI places (in Europa/domestic cup games) .
Thread here on Tom Carroll http://www.fansnetwork.co.uk/football/swanseacity/forum/122855/carroll/#17 As mentioned above about him fitting into Swanseas style and replacing Joe Allen and britton, the Swan fans already agree and little Tommy Carroll already making a good impression.
Nice to hear that he had a good start and fits their style, as well as being part of a win and progression in the cup. Should give him another quick chance to impress and keep himself in the frame for league squads.
Yeah Tom has definitely gone to the ideal Prem club for him to develop. He's got a good bit of competition for places but he has much more of a chance of getting time there than with us. Hope it works out well for him.
Boro have loaned Fredericks and appear to know exactly what they're getting and have the right idea on what he needs. Their manager, Aitor Karanka, a former defender who played and coached at Real Madrid, had this to say: "Ryan is a player who can help us going forward because he's a defender with an attacking mentality. "He can learn a lot with us. We're going to try and help him develop his defending positioning because he's young and aggressive and likes to go forward."
Brentford are absolutely fuming after a decision involving Alex Pritchard which may have turned their game against Norwich: [video=youtube;FU9nHFbTXw8]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FU9nHFbTXw8[/video] Skip to around 1.54 to see it. Looks like he puts the ball round Hooiveld, who clips him and doesn't get anything on the ball. Norwich go up the other end and make it 2-0, after pissing around for a while outside the box. Should get the youngster used to playing for us pretty well!
IMHO the difference between Pritchard and Carroll is that the former seems to have the self-belief to get stuck in and make a difference.
I was at Brentford yesterday and this was the second occasion this season I have seen Pritchard play. I am pleased to report he looks extremely comfortable at this level. I saw him at Swindon last year, and it's fair to say he was getting kicked all over the place at times. He took a mighty great challenge on him in his stride yesterday and thereis an air of maturity about him which I am not convinced was there a year ago. He gave a poor loss of possession yesterday and a year ago his head would have dropped for the next five minutes. Yesterday that wasn't the case, he sprinted back to try and recover his mistake. He is coming along well.
I've read a few interview with him over the past season and a bit and he's said similar things himself. His sending off in the last campaign, reacting petulantly after being hacked down repeatedly, seemed to be something of a turning point in his attitude. He still likes to have a bit of a go at officials, but I think that he accepts that he's going to be targeted, gets back up and goes again. I really hope that he gets a chance with us, as he's definitely got ability and he's an exciting player that's willing to take chances. Great set-pieces, too.
