The Lilywhites appear to have an exciting centre-back sensation on their hands who can rival Micky Van de Ven
It no doubt proved a summer of notable change as far as Tottenham Hotspur are concerned, with new boss Ange Postecoglou having overseen something of a mass squad overhaul after completing nine summer signings, with a raft of first-team assets also heading out the door at N17.
The former Celtic boss appeared particularly intent on altering his centre-back ranks during the recent window after acquiring Dutch giant, Micky van de Ven from Wolfsburg, while also sanctioning the exits of Japhet Tanganga, Joe Rodon and Davinson Sanchez – the latter of whom sealed a £12.8m move to Galatasaray earlier this week.
With Eric Dier having also been deemed somewhat surplus to requirements of late, it has left Postecoglou with arguably just Van de Ven and Cristian Romero to call upon in the heart of the backline, with such limited options likely to be of concern if injuries are to strike.
One potential solution to that concerning depth could have already emerged, however, in the form of teenage summer signing, Ashley Phillips, with the 18-year-old potentially set to represent a perfect understudy in the centre of defence this season.
How much did Tottenham pay for Ashley Phillips?
After having enjoyed something of a breakout season for former club Blackburn Rovers last term – as he made 14 appearances in all competitions – the England U19 international was snapped up in early August by the north London outfit, having initially joined the Championship side at the age of 12 back in 2017.
Acquired by Spurs for a minimal fee of just £2m, the expectation was that the promising youngster would not immediately be involved in the senior set-up, with the club having also been showing an interest in the likes of Edmond Tapsoba and Clement Lenglet.
With those latter moves failing to pan out, however, the onus may well be on Phillips to be fast-tracked in the first-team, with recent reports indicating that he is already training with Postecoglou’s squad “week in, week out”, as per football.london’s Alasdair Gold, having been named on the bench for the win over Burnley last time out.
How good is Ashley Phillips?
Despite his relative inexperience at senior level, Phillips has already earned rave reviews due to his exciting potential in recent times, with former Rovers boss Tony Mowbray having previously said of his talents back in 2021:
“He’s an amazing footballer and he is going to be a mega footballer I’m pretty sure, but he’s a very young boy. He’s a 6’3, 6’4 magnificent cut of a guy, fast as lightning, composed with the ball, aggressive.”
Those latter traits could well make the Salford-born gem a perfect backup to the aforementioned Van de Ven, with the Dutchman also a towering presence at 6 foot 4, while boasting the benefit – like Phillips – of his “extreme speed”, as hailed by Wolfsburg director Marcel Shafer.
Such strengths have already been put to good use during the 22-year-old’s time in England to date, having been hailed as “really impressive” by talkSPORT pundit Danny Murphy after starting every game so far this term.
While Postecoglou will likely be hoping to rely upon the former Volendam ace on a regular basis, it will be necessary to have figures in reserve who can come into the side and take on a similar role when needed, hence why young Phillips could be a dream option in that regard.
Although it remains difficult to judge the qualities of the former Rovers gem as he is somewhat untested at first-team level, his physical capabilities and immense recovery speed appear to suggest that the Lilywhites have a perfect Van de Ven understudy on their hands.
