Kion Etete recalled from Northampton, set for Cheltenham loan

Kion Etete has apparently done so well on loan at Northampton Town that Spurs are bringing him home to send him up a division. Tottenham Hotspur announced on social media today that they have recalled young forward Etete, 20, from his season-long loan to the League Two club.

Etete had been a regular starter for Northampton this season. He scored a brace in his club debut, and finished the first half of the season with six goals and two assists in just over 1200 minutes of action, but suffered a hamstring injury in November and hasn’t played since. Nevertheless, his performance has apparently good enough that the club thinks he needs a step up in competition — while they did not announce it formally, reports are Etete is immediately heading back out on loan, this time to Cheltenham Town in League One.

Cheltenham are currently mid-table in League One and are looking to strengthen their attack to make a second half push up the table. That likely means that Etete, once healthy, will be given a chance against better opposition and to see whether he can stay afloat in a higher division. That’s a real sign of confidence.

Etete signed for Spurs from Notts County in 2019 and plays mostly as a target man style forward. He’s likely a player that Spurs will develop and then flip for a small profit rather than someone they think can turn into a starter for Tottenham, but they clearly see him as a talented young player worth sinking time and resources into. And who knows — with a good burst of development maybe he’ll eventually get into or near the same tear that houses Troy Parrott and Dane Scarlett. Weirder things have happened.