Tottenham Hotspur winger Mikey Moore is only 19 years old, and like so many players in the current Spurs squad, his current talent is only a fraction of his future upside. Moore has the potential to be the face of the Spurs attack if all goes well in his development, and everyone was raving about him back in the 2024/25 season when he first got his cup of coffee for Spurs, even shining in the same Europa League tournament that the Lilywhites won.
But despite a great 2025/26 season on loan at Scottish giants Rangers, Moore is clearly not ready yet for the big time or for the Premier League at all. That point was sealed with his performance on Matchday 1 against Brentford.
Moore could not get open at all on his own and struggled badly to create chances for himself or his teammates. He was horrendous in one on ones, could not progress the ball, and did not have the athletic tools to beat his man. Moore was smart enough, even in his suboptimal position on the right wing, to get open for a couple of chances, but he missed them in rather embarrassing fashion.
Tottenham can't buy into potential too early
The Mikey Moore start for Tottenham Hotspur in the 3-0 loss to Brentford was a reminder of a lesson that Tottenham should have already learned, and that is the simple fact that Spurs cannot win if they are giving starts to young players who are not ready for the top level of Premier League football yet.
Tottenham do need to develop talents, but they are not running a charity here. The bar to start for a Big Six team that wants to make it to the Champions League is very high, and in marquee positions like on the wings, it takes a lot of class to be able to start every week and perform to that level.
Moore can be excellent in the future and should not be someone Spurs give up on, but this performance against Brentford is all the more reason for the Lilywhites to sanction his loan to FC Koln. And Moore is not the only person in this position or who could be in this position in the future, but his display is a reminder that Tottenham can't keep believing in young players too early or conflating potential with what they can do now. Because that is how you lose games and get into relegation battles.
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