Marcus Edwards openly admitted that coming up against Tottenham Hotspur on Tuesday evening was a strange experience. Edwards sparkled against his old club as Sporting CP ran out late 2-0 winners against Spurs in the Champions League.
The 23-year-old joined Spurs at the age of eight and signed a professional contract with the club at 17, but he never made a first-team appearance. Despite being likened to Lionel Messi by Mauricio Pochettino, he was released by Spurs in 2019 and has since flourished playing in Portugal.
The winger, who signed for Sporting from Vitoria in January, caught the eye against his former club, nearly scoring an outstanding individual goal in the first half, only to be denied by Hugo Lloris.
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On a night where Spurs' attacking play didn't click, former Everton midfielder Leon Osman believes Edwards showed some attributes that Tottenham would have benefitted from.
"He had a couple of moments within the game," Osman told BBC'S Football Daily.
"The way he moves, the way he twists and turns, his low centre of gravity, yet he's still taking the ball with him - it's very impressive. Had that goal gone in, we would have been talking about it for many years to come. It was absolutely sensational.
"He looks very good. He's still progressing, still developing in his career. He looks better when he's coming away from the central areas against the bigger and more physical defenders and drifting into wider areas."
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