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Tottenham Hotspur, although they have shown a detachment towards silverware in recent years, are a club that has a proud history boasting some of the finest talent in the Premier League and beyond.
The likes of Gareth Bale and Luka Modric have both gone on to excel elsewhere, with north London providing the platform for such legendary careers, whilst more recently Harry Kane has departed in order to add those elusive trophies to a cabinet adorned with personal accolades, but no major honours.
It has been over a decade since the Lilywhites last lifted a cup, and it likely does have an effect on whether players want to join their club should they have offers elsewhere from sides with a more successful track record in that area.
However, that could all be set to change under Ange Postecoglou, who has seemingly fused the feelgood factor that Mauricio Pochettino’s free-flowing football offered with the results-driven style that Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte’s appointments promised, but ultimately failed to deliver.
Remaining unbeaten after five Premier League games, once again this outfit is a pleasure to watch, but have seemingly removed that weak mentality that their opposition has taken advantage of in the past. Should they maintain their form, starting with the hotly-anticipated north London derby this weekend, who knows how high they can go under the affable Australian.
However, that’s not to suggest that they should completely expunge the past, as there are plenty of successes to take points from to take into this new regime. One such example comes back in 1995, as a strike partnership of Teddy Sheringham and Jurgen Klinsmann was formed that took English football by storm for one blistering year.
How good were Teddy Sheringham & Jurgen Klinsmann?
Sheringham had spent three years at Spurs when his then manager, Ossie Ardiles, came to speak to his hulking English forward, who would recount the story: “I got on really well with Ossie, and I think I was the captain at the time, and Ossie came to me one day and said ‘I want your opinion, I’m thinking about signing someone’. And I was like ‘go on’ and he was like ‘Diego Maradona’, and I went ‘Ossie, Ossie, really!? Are you? Do it, just do it’. He said ‘I’m in talks with him at the moment’ and I was like ‘my God, do it, it would be brilliant to play with him'”.
It would be a short-lived excitement though as he noted: “He came to me about three days later and was like ‘I’ve decided not to sign Diego, he’s got too much baggage around him’.” However, their alternative would be no slouch either, with the club opting for Jurgen Klinsmann instead.
The German, who had just recently won the World Cup with his country, would take little time to acclimatise to English football, forming one of the finest pairings the division has ever seen.
It worked so well due to their varied skillsets and physical profiles, as Sheringham stood at 6 foot 1 and knew exactly how to use his strength. Meanwhile, the former Inter Milan ace was more tricky and technical, able to feed off the chances his new teammate could forge.
Although they would only spend one season together before Klinsmann moved to Bayern Munich, it was a truly groundbreaking year that saw them score 52 goals and assist 27 between them across all competitions, with a combined goal contribution tally of 58 in the league alone.
Sheringham’s 18 league strikes and nine assists upheld this, whilst Klinsmann was the real star, scoring 20 and assisting 11.
The two have remained incredibly complimentary when speaking about one another despite their partnership only lasting a season, with the former USA national team manager suggesting the three-time Premier League winner was “the most intelligent striker I ever worked with”, before claiming: “The partnership with Teddy was one of the most enjoyable experiences I had in my career.”
Meanwhile, the ex-Manchester United marksman noted on the 59-year-old: “You give him half a chance from anywhere, and more often than not he would hit the target, and he would score. He was just ridiculously good.”
Everyone knew the talents these two possessed, to so see their relationship cut short so soon would have marked a hammer blow for the Spurs faithful. Although, a seventh-placed finish with those aforementioned figures marked a vast underperformance, and thus vindicated Klinsmann’s decision to return to his homeland.
It could be argued that the club has seldom seen a partnership like theirs, with Kane and Heung-min Son’s the only one that could really match up.
However, there could be something brewing in the academy that holds promise. The two young stars in question are Troy Parrott and Dane Scarlett, both of whom have been shipped off on loan this season to further their development.
Who are Troy Parrott & Dane Scarlett?
They had each dominated the youth scene with ease, as the former scored 17 in just 15 U18s Premier League games, whilst the latter had 23 goals in as many matches at the same level.
Clearly a couple of prolific forwards, what further draws comparisons is their physical profiles, which actually happen to match that of Sheringham and Klinsmann.
After all, the 21-year-old, who already boasts 20 caps for the Republic of Ireland, stands at 6 foot 1, whilst Scarlett boasts a 5 foot 11 frame. The two are the exact same height as the aforementioned duo.
As if this similarity is not startling enough, the Ipswich Town loanee has also been lauded for his lethal scoring touch, with journalist Charlie Eccleshare noting: “Excited to see how 17 yo Dane Scarlett performs tonight on his first senior THFC start. He was my pick for Spurs’ breakthrough star of this season. Lots of excitement around the clinical striker at the club.”
With Parrott having earned vital senior experience across the last few years, with stints with Millwall, Preston North End and MK Dons, the hope will be that he can hone his technical attributes in the Eredivisie with Excelsior and return ready to star.
Meanwhile, his teenage counterpart is enjoying just his second taste of consistent game time at the senior level, having scored an admirable six times whilst on loan with Portsmouth last year.
As a steadily improving duo who mirror the exact physical profiles of Sheringham and Klinsmann, seeking to emerge into the first-team soon, Postecoglou could soon be blessed with a sensational strike partnership of his own ready to dominate the Premier League in the same way those ageing superstars once did.
Of course, expectations must be tempered and a degree of realism considered, but the future certainly looks bright for two of Spurs’ most promising young forwards.