Tottenham Hotspur are no different to any other club, in that they are also a business, that must keep the finances flowing without overspending outside of their means.
Everton are a great example of a club not to emulate, as their desperation to break into England’s elite has resigned them to years of recent relegation battles, and numerous looming FFP sanctions.
Fortunately, despite the two clubs once being side-by-side in mid-table, Mauricio Pochettino came along to propel the Lilywhites up naturally, without having to bring in a whole host of expensive stars. The Argentine’s impact was swift and stunning, leading to Premier League title charges and even a place in the Champions League final before his eventual exit.
He helped Daniel Levy reach the best form of his business model, as they bettered the stadium, signed lucrative commercial deals and just evolved in general.
However, it remains true that one of the greatest ways to make money is through the academy, particularly with the sales of graduates. Given they cost nothing to produce, as the financial drain of a youth setup is seldom taken into account, any prodigy sold on marks pure profit.
That explains the Toffees’ desperation to offload Anthony Gordon, Ellis Simms and Tom Cannon in the last 12 months, to use them as an example once again.
This is a path that Spurs too have tread down on occasion throughout the years, with arguably their biggest coming just last summer.
Who is Spurs’ greatest-ever academy graduate?
In what was Ange Postecoglou’s first window in charge, the former Celtic boss instead saw these months dominated not by his fresh tactical ideals, or the feel-good factor he promised to bring, but instead by the future of Harry Kane.
As easily one of their best-ever academy products, the 30-year-old was of huge interest to Bayern Munich, given his dwindling contract, and the fact that he had scored 278 goals in 430 games for his boyhood club, becoming their record scorer as well as England’s.
Clearly an exceptionally talented legend of the Premier League, in the end, his desire for silverware proved too much, and he would join Bayern Munich in a £100m move. £100m of pure profit.
When it comes to other youth products, few really come close to the legacy left behind by the England captain. Ledley King, as the quintessential one-club man certainly deserves a mention, whilst Sol Campbell too remains one of their finest exports, even if he sullied his reputation by moving to Arsenal in 2001.
