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Tottenham Hotspur are set to recall Jack Clarke from his loan at Leeds United following an unsuccessful spell where he has been limited to just 19 minutes of League football. According to the ever-reliable Phil Hay at The Athletic.
The 19-year-old did get two starts in the League Cup, playing 70 minutes against Salford City and the first half against Stoke City, but in truth he didn’t do enough to impress in those two games.
Exc - Jack Clarke’s loan at Leeds United is over:https://t.co/UViW2b7eqK
— Phil Hay (@PhilHay_) December 26, 2019
He has often missed out on a place on the bench on a match day as well, but this is mostly because Leeds have six loanees and you can only have five in the squad. So he only was able to make the bench if Marcelo Bielsa decided to leave out France youth international Ilhan Meslier.
It is understood by Phil Hay that Jack Clarke has already had his last training session at Thorp Arch and he will not be involved in the matches against Preston North End and Birmingham City in the coming days.
Mixed feelings about this. A really good half season, but ultimately flattered to deceive a bit. It feels like he was pushed into a move far too soon in his career on the basis of that half season. Sad to see another talented youngster leave, but hasn’t progressed in 12 months. https://t.co/TL5uDfzGEs
— The Square Ball (@TheSquareBall) December 26, 2019
It is a shame for Clarke as he was an important part of the first team squad last season but saw his levels drop a bit following his unfortunate illness away at Middlesbrough and he has struggled to reach his previous form again. The report says he is likely to work under Jose Mourinho for most of the month (I wonder if he might play him in the FA Cup third round as part of his “new Jose” view of young players), before being sent out to another Championship club on loan. I would guess a club closer to London geographically to help him settle at Spurs.
The article also mentions that sources are indicating England youth international Eddie Nketiah is likely to recalled by Arsenal, but that is completely unconfirmed at this stage.