Tottenham wonderkid signed 14 months ago finally set to play first game for the club

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The talented young Irish striker is finally set to get going at Tottenham Hotspur after putting pen to paper more than a year ago

Mason Melia is finally set to get his Tottenham career up and running after the talented teenager returned to full training.

The 18-year-old was considered to be one of the biggest young talents in Irish football when Spurs fended off competition from top Premier League and European clubs to agree a deal with St Patrick's Athletic in February last year for the forward, worth an initial £1.6million - a record transfer for the League of Ireland - with the potential for future add-ons to double that figure.

Melia, who put pen to paper last year on a long-term contract until 2031, was not allowed by EU law to make the move to the Premier League club until he turned 18, which meant he had to wait until January this year to complete the switch.

On top of that, the teenager arrived at the north London outfit that month with a back injury that he had been playing with at St Pats in the final months of their season. It was decided by Spurs' medical staff to let that fully clear up before getting the Irishman into the action.

However, to compound that, before he was set to return Melia then picked up a chest infection that further delayed his attempts to get to work. The rest might not have been a bad thing though for a very young player who has played a lot of football.

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At just 18, Melia has already taken part in 98 senior matches, including Europa League games, and been directly involved in 33 goals, scoring 25 and recording eight assists.

There are high hopes for the Republic of Ireland U21 international and football.london understands that Melia has since returned to full training at Hotspur Way and could potentially get his first minutes in a Spurs shirt in the U21s' Premier League 2 match against West Ham on Saturday afternoon at the club's training ground.

Like his fellow January arrival James Wilson, from Hearts, who has been named on the first team bench twice in the Premier League this season, Melia will spend his initial time with both the U21s and first team but is expected, with his exposure to senior football and his physique and ability, to quickly catch the eye.