Still all scholars at the club, Spurs Academy goalkeepers Adam Hayton, Luca Gunter and Aaron Maguire all play for Spurs’ Under 18 side. All three goalkeepers have featured for the Spurs Under 18 side this season. Adam Hayton and Aaron Maguire are second year scholars with the club, while England youth international Luca Gunter is in his first year of scholarship with the club. The following short piece includes some notes on all three goalkeepers and their time at Spurs so far, since joining the club on a full-time basis. All very talented goalkeepers, this season just like in all of the others seasons that I have been watching Spurs’ Academy sides, Spurs have always had such talented goalkeepers.

Adam Hayton: Luton born goalkeeper Adam Hayton has made ten competitive appearances for Spurs’ Under 18 side this season. He joined Spurs full-time in the summer of 2020, and last season (2020/21) Adam Hayton made six appearances for the Spurs Under 18 side in all competitions, in his debut season with the club on a full-time basis, and he captained them on one occasion last season. For the start of this season Hayton started the first two Premier League South matches, and has so far made an additional eight appearances for the Spurs Under 18 side, as well as making the bench for the Spurs Under 23 side on occasions. Impressing greatly in the two games with Reading in the league, by making a number of match winning saves, Adam Hayton has been reliable throughout the season in the games that he has started, in my opinion. Still eligible to play for the side next season, as Thimothée Lo-Tutala has been this season (he has mainly been with the Spurs Under 23 side), the 17 year old goalkeeper is a very good shot stopper. He has shown that he is capable of making some very good saves, and he commands his box well as he showed as recently as the Norwich City game, on Friday.

A brave goalkeeper and one who I really think has been solid this season whenever he has been given the chance, Adam Hayton is clearly a very talented goalkeeper and one who will be hoping to get more starts for Stuart Lewis’ side during the remainder of the season. I also wouldn’t be surprised if Adam made the Spurs Under 19 squad that travels to The Netherlands for the end of season Terborg Tournament, as a second year scholar.

Aaron Maguire: A player who has represented the Republic of Ireland and also England at youth international level, second year scholar and Londoner Aaron Maguire has so far made four appearances for the Spurs Under 18 side in the Premier League South this season. Maguire made five Premier League South appearances for the Spurs Under 18 side last season, in his first season full-time with the club. Aaron is a calm goalkeeper who also shows great composure in matches, and who also impresses with his distribution. The goalkeeper who only this season was called-up to the Republic of Ireland Under 19 squad, reminds me in some ways of Academy goalkeeper Kacper Kurylowicz, when he was a second year scholar at the club. As like Kurylowicz, Maguire is good at rushing off his line and at making good saves when making his body big, to close down the angles. Aaron has kept one clean sheet this season, in a 7-0 league win over Birmingham City, and he has impressed every time that I have seen him play, including in the Under 17 Premier League Cup final with Manchester City, earlier this month.

The second year scholar like Adam Hayton, will still be eligible to play matches for the Spurs Under 18 side next season. Maguire is yet another one of the promising Academy goalkeepers at Spurs who has good potential in my opinion, and one who I’m looking forward to seeing more of over the next couple of seasons.

Luca Gunter: First year scholar Luca Gunter is a local lad from Enfield, who was previously with Queen’s Park Rangers. A tall goalkeeper with very good reflexes, Luca Gunter impressed greatly in his debut for Spurs’ Under 18 side last October, in a 0-0 Under 18 Premier League Cup game with Stoke City, at Hotspur Way. Gunter made a good number of impressive saves during that match for Spurs. A goalkeeper with very good positioning inside his box, and one who is also quick on his feet, and capable of making really fine saves. Luca has made an additional ten competitive appearances for Stuart Lewis’ side this season, and I think that just like Adam Hayton and Aaron Maguire, Luca has done well in a very talented Spurs Under 18 side. Possibly his finest game so far this season came in the FA Youth Cup fifth round tie with Wolverhampton Wanderers, earlier in the year. After doing well in the previous two rounds, where he made some really good saves, Luca Gunter made a great number of really fine saves in the FA Youth Cup match against Wolves, and his positioning throughout that 3-0 loss, was very good. Having already made the Spurs Under 23’s squad on two occasions this season, I wouldn’t be at all surprised to see the goalkeeper who recently signed his first professional contract with the club, make his debut for the Spurs Under 23 side next season.