Dane Scarlett requires a strong loan spell to kickstart his career (Photo by VLADIMIR SIMICEK/AFP via Getty Images)

Prodigious Tottenham talent backed to benefit from summer N17 exit

Originally posted on To The Lane And Back
By Rohan Sengupta | Last updated Jul 16, 2025 4:40 PM ET

Tottenham academy graduate Dane Scarlett backed to drop down to League One on loan to kickstart his career

Tottenham Hotspur allowed some of their academy stars to leave on loan and gain some valuable experience. One of those to go out on loan was Dane Scarlett.

The Englishman has been thought of very highly at Hotspur Way from an extremely young age, but his development has stalled over the last couple of years. The striker did not make the kind of impact he would have wanted in his loan spells with Portsmouth and Ipswich Town in the EFL.

Last summer, Dane Scarlett joined Oxford United on a season-long loan, although he barely lit the world on fire during his spell. The youngster’s loan spell at Oxford United was cut short in January, and after returning to Spurs, he showed his poacher’s ability by bagging a goal and an assist in just 25 minutes against Swedish side IF Elfsborg in the Europa League.

However, the England youth international could only muster three Premier League appearances before being ruled out by a groin injury. He did manage an assist in the 4-1 demolition of Ipswich Town in February.

John Wenham feels Dane Scarlett is not ready for Premier League action

Despite his recent failures out on loan, there are still high hopes for Scarlett at Tottenham. He is clearly not ready for consistent first-team action in the Premier League or at the highest level. Thus, reputable podcast Lilywhite Rose owner John Wenham thinks the player needs a strong loan to really kickstart his career.

“I think there’s an outstanding player there,” John Wenham exclusively told Tottenham News.

“He just needs one more loan to really kickstart his career. There is no one I’ve seen in youth football, and I watch a lot of it, who can head a ball like Scarlett, and we saw that with the goal he scored for the first team against Elfsborg.

“I want Scarlett just to get a loan where he’s flying, even if that means dropping down to League One, and then Tottenham could move him up one or two divisions in January.

“I think he’s just been unlucky with his loans so far. I still think that Scarlett’s got a great chance, long term, of breaking through at Tottenham.”

There is still hope for Dane Scarlett

There is perhaps still hope within the club that Scarlett can make it at Tottenham and follow the footsteps of legendary of Harry Kane.

It took Kane four loan spells before breaking into the first team at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and then establishing himself as one of the world’s best strikers. He was lucky also to have a manager like Mauricio Pochettino who was not afraid to trust the youth and give them opportunities to excel.

Similarly, Scarlett, who is still only 21, needs just one strong loan spell where he gets regular game time and stays injury free. And for that if he has to drop down to League One, then there should not be any harm and Spurs must advocate for that move.

This article first appeared on To The Lane And Back and was syndicated with permission.

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