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Page last updated at 22:25 GMT, Wednesday, 16 September 2009 23:25 UK

Spurs plan to nurture new talent

Harry Redknapp (left), Ledley King (centre) and Daniel Levy (right)
Redknapp, King and Levy at the site of Spurs' new training centre

Tottenham Hotspur hope their new Enfield training centre can bring on a new generation of football talent.

"Over the years the number of players we've had coming through our Academy has obviously been very disappointing," said Spurs chairman Daniel Levy.

"That's something we're trying to address," he told BBC Radio London.

It will be three years before the full complex at Bulls Cross is finished, housing the First Team, Development and Academy squads.

The Spurs Academy are already using the Enfield site.

And skipper Ledley King, one of the few to have come through the current Spurs system in recent years, said: "The facilities the players will have at their disposal are mind-blowing.

"It's where a player will be every day, working.

"And, if the facilities are top drawer then it really does give everybody the best opportunity to get to the top level of the game."

Spurs chairman Levy has spent the past five years working on the project in a bid to help attract top quality players while allowing the club to also nurture and develop their own.

And, following the Premier League's decision to introduce a minimum quota for home-grown players, Tottenham are hoping their timing will pay off in the long run.

"There'll be no excuses," said manager Harry Redknapp. "We'll give them the best facilities in the world to work with it so it will be up to them now.

"There's got to be the desire, skill and ability of the player. They've got to want to do it."



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