Troy Parrott plays down training performances.
Troy Parrott has played down the intensity of Antonio Conte’s training sessions, after catching the eye in Korea on Monday.
Tottenham Hotspur conducted an open training session in front 6,000 local fans at the Seoul World Cup Stadium, and as some senior stars collapsed on the ground, Parrott impressed observers with his fitness levels.
Kane and Son struggle in heat.
Spurs boss Conte and fitness coach Gian Piero Vetrone are known for their lung-busting training sessions and if players thought they were in for an easy ride in front of the public gaze, they soon came in for a big shock.
Leading striker Harry Kane was pushed so hard that he vomited, and he was soon joined on the sidelines by local hero Son Heung-min and other senior stars, as they struggled in the Korean heat.
Alasdair Gold, the Tottenham correspondent with football.london, is in Korea covering the team and there was one man who stood out to him while watching the session unfold.
Open training is underway 🙌
📌 Seoul World Cup Stadium pic.twitter.com/uDThMln8KL
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) July 11, 2022
“Troy Parrott probably the fittest.”
‘When Son went down, the whole crowd went silent,’ Gold tweeted. ‘Kane went over and helped him back up before he rejoined the next run to cheers. Now Kane, Son, Tanganga, Bissouma have all dropped out of the last set of runs. Troy Parrott probably the fittest and was leading the final run.’
In a piece written after the session, Gold re-iterated the fitness levels of the Dubliner, by writing:
‘Davinson Sanchez, Bryan Gill and newcomer Pape Matar Sarr were among the fittest and led many of the later runs by a distance, but it was Troy Parrott who led the group back in the 42nd and final run of the night.’
Earlier on in the day, at a Tottenham Hotspur Global football development session with young adults from ChildFund Korea, Gold caught up with Parrott to ask him what he made of Conte’s sessions, and the 20-year-old gave a fair level-headed answer.
“It depends who you ask,” he responded. “I’m quite a good runner naturally, but yeah it’s been tough. It’s been hard work but it’s all preparation.”
Brutal training sessions under Conte. The players are being put through repeated full pitch runs after two hours of training. Players dropping out, feeling the heat and pace, before rejoining the group. Kane and Son among those feeling the pace, collapsing and then rejoining. pic.twitter.com/AOhSDvwAMS
— Alasdair Gold (@AlasdairGold) July 11, 2022
Loan move on hold.
Parrott’s ability to take Conte’s sessions in his stride is sure to impress the Italian, who reportedly put a loan move to Sunderland for the forward on hold, so that he could take him on the trip to the Far East.
While none of this guarantees playing time in North London for Parrott this season, reports of his high fitness levels will only make Ireland fans more excited about what he can bring to Stephen Kenny’s side.
Spurs take on a K League selection in a friendly this coming Wednesday, in a match in which Parrott will hopefully be given some minutes.
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