Tottenham sign Wigan starlet Alfie Devine

The 15-year-old starlet has already featured for England U16, while also excelling at Wigan youth levels last season.

WIGAN, ENGLAND - JANUARY 08: J'Neil Bennett of Tottenham Hotspur is tackled by Alfie Devine of Wigan Athletic during the FA Youth Cup: Fourth Round match between Wigan Athletic and Tottenham Hotspur at DW Stadium on January 08, 2020 in Wigan, England. (Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images)

By William Furness29 July 2020 15:16 BST

Tottenham Hotspur have captured the signature of 15-year-old midfielder Alfie Devine from Wigan Athletic.

Wigan are currently facing administration and were relegated from the Championship last week, so the reported sum of 300,000 will be of great need to the Lactics.

WHO IS ALFIE DEVINE?

The highly-rated 15-year-old midfielder excelled in Wigan youth sides last season and was even part of the Lactics’ record-breaking U18’s this season – Peter Murphy’s side reaching the quarter-finals of the FA Youth Cup for the first time.

Devine even featured for the under-23's and also trained with the first team, which was rewarded with him signing a long-term deal with the club last month, but due to their financial difficulties, they needed to offload any players worth stock to keep the club afloat.

The midfielder featured as Latics reached the quarter-finals of the FA Youth Cup this season, starting the game at Old Trafford in front of over 2,000 travelling Latics supporters.

HOW MUCH POTENTIAL?

All of this experience for someone below the age of 16 – it is clear to see why many clubs were in the race, including Leeds United and Celtic.

Academy manager Gregor Rioch had his say on Devine’s potential:

“Alfie is one of the best players I have worked with; he has a mature head on young shoulders.

“He has been capped by England and is regarded as one of the best for his age in the country. He is a player we like to challenge and stretch, and he is consistently meeting those challenges, having shown comfort at under 18 level as a 15-year-old and also played for the under 23s.

“Having already represented England, he has huge potential and he gave Wigan supporters a glimpse of his talent at Old Trafford earlier this year, playing in the FA Youth Cup v Manchester United at just 15.”

Spurs will be delighted at capturing a highly rated youngster, not only to improve their youth sides but make the future look a lot brighter with talent like Devine waiting to be unearthed.

Spurs U18 coach Matt Taylor spoke to Spurs’ website about Devine, and his upcoming task as a player for the team:

“Alfie comes to us hungry to develop and make progress, just like the 10 young men who have moved up from our Under-16s this year. It’s an exciting time for these players as they start this new chapter in their lives as full-time employees of the football club and begin to understand what’s expected of them, taking on board the DNA of Tottenham Hotspur.

“Now it’s about listening, learning, and working as diligently as they possibly can under the circumstances, while we continue to follow the Premier League protocols around returning to training. There’s a really positive mood around the place at the moment and we’re all looking forward to the start of the new season.”