Ireland’s newest sensation turned 15 last month. Troy Parrott is the latest talent off the storied production line at Dublin schoolboy club Belvedere and has been described as one of the best underage strikers this country has seen in over 20 years.

He’s an all-action, powerful front man with tremendous work rate, exceptional vision, skill and a killer touch. Not to mention deadly in front of goal. On one of his many visits to Britain for trials, he played in a club’s in-house game with a mixture of their Under-15 players – A team v B team style.

Parrott played the first half for the B team and scored five times. He switched sides at half-time and netted another four. It’s why Manchester United, Manchester City, Liverpool and Chelsea have all been trying to sign him since the age of 13. Everton and Southampton were also interested.

Celtic, too, but it was Tottenham Hotspur who stole a march on them all and managed to convince the boy from Buckingham Street in Dublin’s north inner city that north London was the place for him.

‘He’s the best talent around in this country, he’s definitely the top prospect,’ Celtic’s Irish scout Eugene Magee insists. ‘And he’s one of the most exciting I’ve seen in 20 years.’

It may seem strange, but Parrott is seen as somewhat of a late developer. While Wes Hoolahan, another inner city Dub who dazzled with Belvo, was held back because of his size, Parrott already has the physical attributes to match an intelligent football brain.

‘It becomes obvious after a while about those players who have an extra spark. With some you can tell from nine or 10, with Troy it didn’t become clear just how good he was until he was around 12. That’s when we realised,’ Vincent Butler, Belvedere’s director of football affairs and former Republic of Ireland youth team manager, says.

The catalyst for Britain’s biggest clubs to come chasing Parrott’s signature was when Everton asked if he could represent them in an Under-14 tournament which had been organised by the Northern Irish FA a couple of years ago.

Northern Ireland’s Under-14s, Glasgow Rangers and a selection of some of the best French teenagers from the southern part of the country were all involved. Parrott was the star of the show.

‘A lot of the scouts that were there would have been from England and Scotland, when they heard he was from Dublin they immediately rang their clubs to see if they already had Troy in their focus,’ Butler recalls.

‘But most had never even heard of him when he was 13. Within an hour I was getting phone calls from Dublin-based scouts, Man City, Chelsea, everywhere, asking about this lad Troy Parrott. They were given out to by their superiors for not having brought him to their attention. That was the start of it.’

Spurs weren’t about to hang about and last summer made the most of the fact most other academies had signed off for a break. Parrott, at the time only 14, travelled to Belgium with the club’s Under-16 side and impressed so much in a game against Club Brugge that they were keen to make a commitment of a contract once he turns 16 next year.

Indeed, first team manager Mauricio Pochettino was said to have received a glowing first hand report of Parrott’s ability from his son Maurizio who played in the game. As per FIFA Article 19, which deals with the transfers of those under 18 and the protection of minors, Parrott cannot sign officially with the north London club until he turns 16.

With the continued uncertainty over how Brexit will impact on the future progression of Ireland’s best talent, Parrott and talents like his could soon be forced to remain here. But he has agreed a three-year deal in principle, with the blessing of his mother, and is now represented by the UK-based agency Unique Sports Management (Harry Kane is also a client).

Parrott spent a week in the Netherlands with the Republic of Ireland’s Under-15 side as they played two friendlies against their Dutch counterparts last month. The hosts won the first game 5-1 while the second fixture was 1-1. Parrot scored once, hit the bar twice and set up Manchester United youngster Ayodeji Sotona for Ireland’s goal in the drawn match.

‘Troy was the best player on the pitch in both games,’ Butler, who travelled to Holland, feels. He’s big and strong and very, very active. He’s all action and very skilful, very brave. He’s non-stop, he never stops running, he chases everything down. He’s the ideal sort of player to have. He’s a real handful.’

‘He’s a nice kid, he’s not big headed or anything like that. He’s considerate toward his own players,’ Butler continues. ‘He encourages people on the pitch. He hasn’t exhibited any nasty streak as yet and hopefully that’s how he remains. I would say I think he will come through. He could get on international teams early because of the presence he has.

‘There are an awful lot of pitfalls in between there and now but the progress he’s making I can see him doing very well for himself. I’ll give whatever advice I feel he needs. Troy is very level-headed about his football. He’s not somebody, he knows how good he is and it doesn’t bother him. He’ll go and do his best every time.

‘He doesn’t rub it in to other people. He just gets on with his game.’