WBA U18s 0-1 Spurs - report from WBA Training Centre

Daniel Akindayini struck 20 minutes from time to give our Under-18s a deserved 1-0 win at West Bromwich Albion on Wednesday.

The striker assigned Nathan Oduwa’s powerful left-sided run and cross the end product it deserved as we secured the points after controlling much of the game.

Samir Nabi gave us an early scare when he drilled a low shot just beyond the far post from a tight angle but, in truth, that was the only real time Liam Priestley’s goal came under threat in the first period.

We nearly took the lead on 14 minutes when Kyle Walker-Peters got down the left and passed to Will Miller on the edge of the box, the midfielder turning the ball onto his right foot before curling a sublime effort towards the top corner which Baggies goalkeeper Alex Palmer had to be at full stretch to push over the bar.

Joe Pritchard stabbed the ball straight at Palmer from a central position six minutes later, while Miller crashed a shot just wide after a short corner routine caught the hosts’ defence napping.

Miller caught a glimpse of goal after Walker-Peters’ low drive was parried out by Palmer in his direction, but Kyle Howkins just took it off his toe on the penalty spot to prevent him from getting a shot away.

Walker-Peters continued to work hard down the left and just before the half-hour mark he tricked his way between Joshua Ezewele and Rees Wedderburn at the side of the box, only to direct his subsequent shot wide of the post.

Palmer was forced to get low to block an angled drive from the right side by Emmanuel Sonupe a minute later, but the remainder of the half was played out without either stopper being seriously troubled.

Sonupe burst down the right flank eight minutes after the restart and squared for Akindayini, whose eventual right-footed effort took a slight touch off a defender on its way past the upright.

Pritchard scooped high over the top shortly afterwards while Sonupe stung the palms of the home custodian with a rising drive as we continued to search for the breakthrough.

That duly arrived in the 70th minute when substitute Anthony Georgiou fed Oduwa on the left with the latter muscling his way down the wing before sending a low ball into the area which Akindayini turned home at the near post.

It was a deserved advantage the lads had taken – and it could have been doubled six minutes later when Georgiou’s cross was met by Miller, whose first time effort was strong but central and, resultantly, comfortable for Palmer.

The keeper also did well to catch a fierce rising shot from Akindayini five minutes from time after good work in the build-up by Filip Lesniak and Anton Walkes, two players who were forced to stay alert as the Baggies chased a leveller in the closing moments.

The hosts’ best chance to equalise arrived on 90 minutes as Wedderburn took charge of Andre Wright’s looping cross into the box from the left and prodded in the direction of the lurking Shaun Donnellan, but Priestley was alert to the danger and smothered the ball before the Baggies man could reach it.

Spurs: Priestley, Campbell-Young (Georgiou 60), Walker-Peters, Lesniak, Carter-Vickers, Walkes, Sonupe (Ross 72), Pritchard (Harrison 60), Akindayini, Miller, Oduwa.