It gives me no pleasure to point out faults in youth players, but who on earth scouted Jack Clarke and brought him to Tottenham. He may well be only 20, but the reality here is pretty much the same sob story that we have with 19-year-old Troy Parrott.
This minutes played chart from Wyscout (£) tells us plenty about Jack, he gets minutes but then ultimately fails to impress enough to entice sustained appearances, no matter where he is. The cynic in me says that he was ‘marketed’ in the strength of occasional good games, opposed to any sense of consistency he brought to bear.
As with Parrott, looking for highlight actions is hard work. It was all very hit-and-miss. Against Swansea City, Jack was on for 50+ minutes. Aerial duels / won 0. Defensive duels / won 0. Clearances 0. He didn’t do much at all.
Losses 8, in own half 4
This may appear to be a tough action to highlight this penalty given away against Swansea City on 03.03.2021but no matter what level you’re at, nobody cares about cheating. If there is contact, then it will be given. Ask anyone who has even got within a hair’s breadth of Mo Salah this season.
In conclusion, this appears to be another hype over substance situation. Is a player such as this worth being ‘plucked’ by Tottenham? If the answer is yes, then we need to hear something more convincing than ‘give him time’.
Tottenham is a Premier League side and frankly, Clarke looks a million miles away from the standards one might expect. Nothing personal, I just can’t see it. Stoke City can’t either as his minutes have been diminishing since he arrived.