‘He Has Real Talent’ – Tottenham Prospect Recognised By NT Boss | OneFootball

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Tottenham Hotspur talent Jamie Donley has been hailed by Northern Ireland boss Michael O’Neill, who believes that the Spurs attacker has serious potential.

Donley is a product of Tottenham’s highly rated youth set-up and has played for the club’s senior team, making his debut for the first team in late 2023.

He has four senior appearances for Spurs to his name and last season, he was loaned out to League One side Leyton Orient, where he impressed, clocking close to 3,700 minutes in 52 matches.

The versatile attacker scored eight times, providing eleven assists for the O’s, and he was regularly hailed by Orient boss Richie Wellens, who dubbed Donley a ‘special talent’.

In the summer, though, Championship side Stoke City got him on loan, but he is not a player who has been trusted by Mark Robins with minutes at the Potters.

Donley has clocked only about 77 league minutes, featuring only twice as a substitute in the last 13 matches for the Championship side.

However, on Monday night, Donley scored the only goal of the match between Luxembourg and Northern Ireland, and O’Neill stressed that the Spurs talent was amongst the best players and was excellent on the pitch.

“They [the players] are pleased to win the game. It was a tough game; we knew it would be”, the 56-year-old told the BBC.

“I thought Jamie Donley was excellent for the period he was on the pitch.

“I thought Ethan [Galbraith] was very strong in the second half, and I thought Ciaron Brown did well and Jamal Lewis back as well.”

O’Neill is convinced that Donley has unquestionable talent, recognising that he is unlucky to have not played a lot for Stoke.

“He is a very talented boy.

“We are delighted to get him when we did.

“It was great, obviously being involved with England underage and having been born here in Northern Ireland, it was nice to get him as part of our group

“He has probably been a bit unlucky not to have played a lot more, but he hasn’t played a lot in his loan period at Stoke.

“I am sure he is disappointed with that.

“He has real talent.

“I see a player who can be a real asset to this squad and can play in a number of positions”, he added.

Cambridge United boss Neil Harris is also a fan of Donley and he said that the 20-year-old has all the pedigree to play in the Premier League.

Now it remains to be seen if his luck will change at Stoke, as he is in desperate need of game time to nourish his potential; Tottenham could look to bring him back from Stoke in January if things do not change by then.