Exclusive | Much Moore to come

Mikey Moore is drawing the plaudits from his team-mates, Head Coach and our supporters alike at the moment, but the precocious teenager is keeping his feet firmly on the ground.

The 17-year-old, who was rewarded with his first professional contract in August, is currently enjoying a breakthrough campaign in 2024/25 having made his full debut in the Europa League and a first Premier League start amongst his eight senior appearances so far this season.

Described as 'brilliant' by Ange Postecoglou, singled out by James Maddison and the name on our supporters’ lips after his dazzling displays in recent months, it is the young attacker's humility that shines through most - something recognised by our Head Coach since working with him - and he vows to always remain grounded and true to his humble nature.

"No matter what I do in football, I want to stay humble, keep working hard and that's the main thing for me as a player and person," said the measured Mikey.

"When you play football, people don't really get to see the human side of you but you always want to be a nice person and stay grounded.

"I know I have a lot more to show. Some of my performances have been okay but I still have a lot more to give to help the team. I have that belief in myself to be able to help in any game.

"I'm still nowhere near where I want to get to, so I need to carry on with what I'm doing but I always want to stay true to myself as a person."

This article continues in full below and has been taken from an exclusive interview with Mikey in the latest edition of our Matchday Programme.

Having joined Spurs as a seven-year-old, our Academy product quickly progressed through our ranks and featured regularly for our Under-18s in 2022/23 while still a schoolboy, helping Stuart Lewis’ young side secure the Under-17 and Under-18 Premier League Cup double.

In April 2023, aged 15, he then became the youngest player to appear for our Under-21s in the Premier League 2 and continued to impress with our Under-18s last season, ending with 14 goals and eight assists in just 12 appearances in the Under-18 Premier League.

But, why Spurs? As an attack-minded player who loves to excite with his dribbling ability, the England Under-19 international revealed a main reason was being allowed the freedom to express himself on the pitch even from a young age which carried on throughout his time in the Academy.

"I was playing in a few development centres but I'm a player who likes to express myself with the ball and this was the club where I was given the freedom to try things which I loved when I was younger and still do now," he explained.

"I think that was the main reason at the time, letting me be myself when playing football, and that carried on through my younger years when I had some brilliant coaches along the way.

"When I made my way into the Under-18s, Stu, Bradley [Allen], Jermain [Defoe] and all the Academy coaches helped me so much. They kept allowing me to express myself and keep being free and ever since I've kept on looking forward."

His form at youth level soon caught Ange's attention and led to him becoming our youngest-ever player to feature in a Premier League fixture when he made his debut against Manchester City at the age of 16 years, nine months and three days at the end of 2023/24.

Having been named amongst the substitutes for our three league games prior to his debut, he again featured off the bench in the season finale at Sheffield United last term and backed this up with a memorable pre-season where, still at 16 years of age, he scored his first senior goal at Hearts and bagged the winner against Vissel Kobe on Tour, featuring in all six friendlies ahead of the new campaign.

Mikey is now firmly part of our Head Coach’s plans and his transition into the senior setup has been made easier by the familiar faces in the coaching staff and the welcome and guidance received from the squad, even if he was a little awestruck by a certain Heung-Min Son at first!

"Since coming into the first team, the gaffer and the coaches have helped me a lot," added the attacker, who took Legacy Number 883 with his debut against City.

"I know a few of the coaches from when I was in the Academy like Mase [Ryan Mason] and Wellsy [Matt Wells], who I knew a little bit, so the coaching staff have been big for me. Especially Mase, he's helped me come into the setup and they've made it an easier transition into first team football.

"All the players have welcomed me, too. You have to gain their respect first, it's an environment where there is a lot on the line so you have to earn that, but all the boys have been really good.

"Sonny is helping me all the time and Madders as well, they're helping me as a player but also off the pitch with keeping grounded and respectful towards everyone.

"When I first came over, I was a bit star struck! Growing up, Sonny has been an idol of mine ever since I've been at the Club and being able to play with him now is a big thing for me.

"Now he helps me and we're team-mates which is a bit crazy to think but being able to play with him is helping me loads and he's a great person."

After a handful of exciting cameos on European debut against Qarabag and in Premier League wins over Brentford and Manchester United, our number 47 soon earned his first competitive start in our 2-1 win at Ferencvaros before making his full home debut against AZ Alkmaar in the Europa League last month.

As someone who wants to excite fans with bags of talent at his disposal, Mikey shone throughout to claim the Player of the Match award – as voted by our supporters – on both occasions, with his almost unplayable second-half display in our 1-0 win over AZ at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium being likened to having Brazil’s Neymar on the left wing by Madders – but the mature youngster won't be getting carried away.

"Playing in those games and being able to win the Player of the Match voted by the fans is the stuff of dreams really," said the Academy graduate.

"You want the manager to trust you and want you to get on the ball. Once I got into the game a bit more in the second half, I wanted the ball to keep coming to me and I think I showed for a good period for the game what I can do.

“For me, personally, I always want to create that excitement in the crowd. When I got the ball I was thinking I'm going to beat my man or try to make something happen and I felt that from the fans, manager and players whenever I had the ball - it was a top game.

“Doing that at home and playing in front of our crowd in that stadium was a dream come true. I know Madders came out after the game with a big compliment but I’m not sure about that just yet! It's obviously nice to hear but that was only one game so there's still a lot more to do.”

His performances on the continent rightly pushed him in contention for a Premier League start and that moment duly came three days later away to Crystal Palace, becoming the youngest player to start in the top flight this millennium and the youngest since fellow Academy graduate Stephen Carr in September 1993.

Edged out 1-0 by Palace team that afternoon, the young forward admitted his performance didn’t go as he would have liked but, such is his mentality, each experience is an opportunity to improve, and it still served as a really good learning curve against their physical back five.

"It didn't go as I wanted it to but it's a massive experience for me to be starting in a game like that against a really physical side," he reflected.

"It was a match where we maybe didn't have our best team performance, but we still had to dig in, so it was good to be involved in that and learn from it.

"All these experiences, playing in multiple competitions like the Premier League, Europa League or Carabao Cup, it's always going to make me better and give me new experiences to learn from. 

"It's about finding ways to deal with that and get yourself into the game. Coming up against the back five, as a winger you can get shut off, but you need to pick up positions to find a way to create something or score a goal because that's what the top players do. That's what I've taken away from that experience and want to try to add to my game."

The Academy graduate has already endeared himself to the fanbase with some dazzling displays in the younger age groups in recent seasons and renditions of 'Mikey Moore, he’s one of our own' has been a fan favourite on a matchday since his succession into the first team group.

Currently recovering from an illness that has ruled him out of consecutive defeats away to Galatasaray in Europe and Ipswich Town in the league, the teenager has been taken aback by the level of support he is receiving at the moment and described the feeling of hearing his name sung by the Spurs faithful as the best he’s experienced in the game to date.

"That's the best feeling I've had in football so far!" beamed Mikey.

"You don't expect it at all! Being a young Academy boy who hasn't really played much, I'd had a few decent performances, but you don't expect to come in and have them singing your name.

"Playing in the men's game is a lot different, especially coming on in front of massive crowds, but I like the pressure of playing in front of a lot of people because that's what you work towards.

"I really appreciate everyone who is supporting me, it's the best feeling you can get when you're playing a football game and hearing the fans singing your name.

"It's what every young player who wants to be a professional looks forward to and wants to experience in the game.

"I'm so thankful for them, especially when I'm at the Stadium and 60,000 people are singing. I'm so thankful and grateful to them."