Young striker thrilled with Cup win

Match winner Ryan Loft got his hands on Premier League Under-18 Champions Cup silverware at the weekend and declared: “This is going to give us a massive boost.”

The young forward headed home the only goal of the game as our Under-18s triumphed over Portuguese giants Benfica in Saturday’s tournament final, having beaten Everton and drawn with Real Madrid in the Group Stage on Friday.

Held at our Training Centre, the two-day event brought together some of the brightest young players from clubs across the UK and Europe.

Having helped his side to victory, Ryan hopes the big win is a sign of things to come.

“It feels good to get the goal in such a big match and it was great to help the team win,” said Ryan, who also netted twice in our 5-1 win over the Toffees on Day One and went on as a substitute in the subsequent 1-1 draw with Real.

“It was a hard game, Benfica were attacking quite a lot in the second half so we had to be disciplined defensively, but we held on.

“This is the first trophy we’ve won in a little while, so it’s been a great experience and it’ll give us a massive boost going forward. Our confidence is high and hopefully this isn’t going to be the last silverware we win as a team.”

Watch highlights from our 1-0 win against Benfica on Spurs TV...