Arsenal teenager Myles Lewis-Skelly was arguably the story of Wednesday's north London derby, producing a coming-of-age display in his side's 2-1 win, but Tottenham pair Archie Gray and Lucas Bergvall, also 18, were standout players on the night, too.
Gray, who is deputising out-of-position at centre-back, and Bergvall, as well as 24-year-old Djed Spence, have been rays of light in Spurs' gloomy midwinter, going from bit-part players early in the season to regular starters across a number of positions.
Gray's ability to fill-in at the heart of defence has been enormous for Ange Postecoglou, while Bergvall arrived at Spurs as an attacking midfielder but impressed at No6 in the second half at the Emirates – and is likely to continue in a deeper role for Sunday's visit to Everton.
They were both impressive at the Emirates, even as Spurs slipped to a sixth league defeat in nine games. The teenage pair are also emerging as unlikely leaders in a squad which appears short of influential senior players, particularly with one of Postecoglou's vice-captains, Cristian Romero, injured and the other, James Maddison, in and out of the side.
"Our young players are certainly standing up," Postecoglou said ahead of the visit to Goodison Park. "Leadership can come in all forms and maybe it will be the young ones that do get us through, there’s no reason why they can’t.
“That’s the message I’ve been giving back to them, whatever it takes and whoever stands up in these moments, don’t wait for somebody else. If you feel like it’s going to be you, then you take that moment."
Postecoglou is not just enamoured by the way Gray and Bergvall are playing for Spurs – taking responsibility and refusing to hide in difficult moments and, in the Swede's case, scoring the winner in the Carabao Cup semi-final first leg against Liverpool – but the way they are behaving, too.
"Leading by example and also their voices," the Australian added. "I try to encourage that as much as I can. Sometimes when you’re a young player or a new player you feel like it isn’t your place. I always think that in the best environments, people feel comfortable enough about speaking up that they just do it.
"They don’t worry about whether they’re the youngest or they’ve just arrived. They just feel like it’s the right thing to do. We need everyone to step up."
Postecoglou has also seen growth from Dominic Solanke and Dejan Kulusevski this season but the emergence of Gray and Bergvall as influential figures on the pitch and in the dressing room has further highlighted the influence (or lack of) of Spurs' senior stars, which has felt like an issue in their difficult season.
It was easy to wonder again about their leadership at the Emirates as the visitors squandered yet another lead, conceding twice in four minutes before the interval, especially as Yves Bissouma, 27, their second-oldest player on the pitch after captain Heung-min Son, lost possession in the build-up to the winner.
The return of Ben Davies, 31, this weekend should help, while Richarlison, 27, is set for more minute against his former club after a long-awaited return from injury against Arsenal. But Postecoglou has admitted Spurs are short of established leaders.
"Whenever you’re in a situation like ours, my experience tells me you do need the ones who’ve maybe been through the tougher times to lead you through it," he said. "There’s no doubt about it.
"So that’s what we’re looking at. Now we don’t have a lot in that bracket to be fair. If you look at the other night [at Arsenal], especially.
"But the ones who do, whether that’s Sonny or Madders, or Ben who’s back now and Dom to a certain extent, although it’s his first year at the club. Maybe a Bissouma, we don’t have a great deal of experience to lean on in these times, but, certainly, for us to get through it, it’s going to need some leadership."
Postecoglou has previously said Spurs will not attempt to buy experience but instead develop leadership in young players. He reiterated on Friday that the priority this month is to bring in "able bodies" – suggesting the club will target younger signings who are capable of featuring at a high intensity every three days.
"What we need right now is some able bodies who can help us get through this period," he said. "That’s more important [than experience] because every game we have close to double-digit absences and we need to try and get some help to get through that."
The head coach has consistently promised that Spurs will be better for their brutal injury crisis and grim run of results in the long-term, and the rapid development of both Gray and Bergvall suggests he may be proved right.
