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The league action for our Academy sides concludes for the calendar year this weekend with both sides in action on Saturday.

Our Under-18s are first up at Hotspur Way as they host Norwich City at 12pm (UK), looking for their 16th win of the calendar year in all competitions.

Stuart Lewis' side come into the fixture unbeaten in their last four games, having edged a five-goal thriller against Middlesbrough in the FA Youth Cup last weekend.

Whilst the Under-21s travel to the south coast to take on Brighton at 2pm, knowing a win in their penultimate fixture of the year could take them into the top 16 on goal difference.

Coverage

You can follow the action in our Under-18s' game live on SPURSPLAY in addition to our usual app and social coverage.

You can keep up to date with how our Under-21s get on via the Spurs App & socials, with a full match report to follow after the final whistle.

The Opposition - Norwich City Under-18s

The Canaries kicked off their season by coming from behind the take a point against current league leaders Aston Villa, before back-to-back defeats against Fulham and Crystal Palace which saw them ship nine goals.

Greg Cane's side bounced back by going unbeaten in their next five league games, starting with a resounding 5-0 win against Reading, followed by draws with Southampton, Brighton and West Brom and another victory against Arsenal.

Their last league fixture came over a month ago in a 3-1 defeat to Chelsea, that run leaving them ninth in the Under-18 Premier League table although they're averaging scoring two goals per game, finding the back of the net 19 times already this season.

The side have been knocked out of the Premier League Cup, finishing third in Group A with four points, but progressed in the FA Youth Cup last weekend, edging a seven-goal thriller against Brentford.

The Last Five...

There hasn't been a draw in this fixture since February, 2020 - a run that spans eight games.

The sides have been closely matched recently, as the Canaries have picked up two wins and we've taken the spoils three times over the last five meetings.

30 April, 2022 - U18 Premier League - Norwich City 3-2 Spurs (Bloxham & Kyerematen)

29 November, 2022 - U18 Premier League - Spurs 3-0 Norwich City (Williams, O.Irow & Donley)

1 April, 2023 - U18 Premier League - Norwich City 0-4 Spurs (Akhamrich, Williams (2) & Ajayi)

7 October, 2023 - U18 Premier League - Spurs 7-2 Norwich City (Black, O.Irow, Moore (3), Olusesi & James)

16 April, 2024 - U18 Premier League - Norwich City 2-0 Spurs

The Opposition - Brighton & Hove Albion Under-21

Brighton come into this one having lost just one of their opening nine league games, sitting in third on 20 points, just four behind leaders Manchester City.

The sole defeat came on the opening day against West Ham, before bouncing back with a 4-0 victory over West Brom and a point against Wolves.

Albion then won the next three on the bounce without conceding edging a tight game 1-0 against Nottingham Forest, before dispatching Middlesbrough 3-0 and grabbing the headlines with a stunning performance to beat rivals Crystal Palace 10-0 at the start of October.

Further wins against Derby and Southampton followed before a draw against Arsenal last time out at the start of the month with the remarkable start also yielding the best defence in the league - they have only conceded on seven occasions so far this season.

Away from league action, the Seagulls were narrowly knocked out of the Vertu Trophy earlier in the campaign, and are currently fifth in their National League Cup group with five points from their opening three.

However, they look to be progressing in their Premier League Cup group as they sit second, and have a 100% record in the Premier League International Cup, as well as progressing into the third round of the Sussex Senior Cup.

One to watch... Caylan Vickers

There are plenty of players to choose from when it comes to Brighton. Their current top scorer is Joshua Duffus, who is on 10 goals, closely followed by Marcus Ifill on nine whilst Cameron Peupion and Harry Howell are on eight apiece, but we're going for Caylan Vickers.

Vickers joined the Seagulls on deadline day in February this year, and notched three goal involvements in his first nine appearances for the club in the latter half of 2023/24.

Prior to that, the youngster was at Reading, rising through the ranks from the age of seven to make his first-team debut in August. 2023, despite playing Under-18s football just three months prior.

He went on to make 22 senior appearances for the Royals, notching six-goal involvements before his move to the south coast, which included an assist on debut in a 4-0 win over Millwall and his first professional goal coming as a late match winner against Bolton Wanderers.

This campaign has yielded six goals and two assists so far, including a hat-trick in a stunning 10-0 win over Crystal Palace, which saw him nominated for PL2 Player of the Month for October.

The Last Five...

The sides have been well-matched of late, we've won two of the last five while there have been two draws as well as a sole Brighton win.

15 January, 2021 - Premier League 2 - Brighton 1-5 Spurs (Marsh, Sterling, Etete, Scarlett & Lavinier)

5 November, 2021 - Premier League 2 - Brighton 1-1 Spurs (Markanday)

2 May, 2022 - Premier League 2 - Spurs 0-0 Brighton

30 September, 2022 - Premier League 2 - Brighton 4-0 Spurs

11 February, 2023 - Premier League 2 - Spurs 3-1 Brighton (Mundle (2) & Santiago)