Mourinho Hails Spurs' Teenage Sensation, Likens Him To Manchester United’s Rashford

Jose Mourinho heaped praise on Tottenham Hotspur’s teenage sensation Dane Scarlett after the forward assisted a goal in their 4-0 win over Wolfsberger in the Europa League Wednesday.

The Spurs manager also compared Scarlett to Manchester United star Marcus Rashford, while he also said the young forward will become a regular first-team player next season.

Spurs cruised into the Europa League last 16 with an 8-1 aggregate win over Austrian side Wolfsberger. Mourinho’s side went into Wednesday’s fixture with a 4-1 lead. Dele Alli put the hosts 1-0 up with his 10th-minute strike before Carlos Vinicius scored soon into the second half. Gareth Bale netted Spurs’ third before the 25-year-old Brazilian, Vinicius, struck again, this time with an assist from a 16-year-old Scarlett.

At 16 years and 337 days, Scarlett became the first 16-year-old to assist a Europa League goal since Kylian Mbappe, during his stint with Monaco, in December 2015 against Tottenham.

"He is a diamond, a kid with incredible potential. He has worked many times with the first team and that gives him a different personality. He is still 16, 17 soon and I believe next season he will be a first-team squad player because he has a lot of talent. He is going to be a fantastic player and I hope everything around him goes well. He is a striker, a number nine, I have been playing him from the sides similar to Marcus Rashford and is very clever," Mourinho was quoted by Teamtalk, as saying, in a post-match interview.

Scarlett made his first-team debut for Spurs last year during a Europa League game. He has also made an appearance in the Premier League, coming in as a substitute during his side’s home game against West Brom earlier this month.

Meanwhile, Mourinho acknowledged the effort from Alli as well, who has had a forgettable season at Spurs. Having fallen out of favor under Mourinho at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, he has made just six appearances in the Premier League in the 2020-21 season.

However, he had the best night on the field since he failed to exit the club during the winter transfer window in January.

"We had a difficult period, he had an injury and at the same time talk, talk, talk about staying or leaving. The market closed, the injury went and he started working with motivation. He is playing very well, I am not saying at this moment we have a starting line-up because of so many matches but it is coming. The goal was beautiful but the meaning of the assists and hard work for the team means more to me. That work of continuity in the performance is what makes me really happy," Mourinho told BT Sport after Spurs’ victory Wednesday night.