Tottenham newbie Antonin Kinsky blew coaches away, is likened to Petr Cech and has famous ex-footballer father
ANTONIN KINSKY’S switch to Spurs happened so fast the young goalie had to make a late dash to pick up some boots and gloves.
The ambidextrous Czech, 21, was so certain he was staying at Slavia Prague that he had arranged to receive some new mitts from his glove sponsor this past Sunday.
But after turning his phone on on Friday evening after a relaxing sauna and massage, he discovered his Tottenham transfer was on – meaning he was in need of some fresh gear.
Kinsky, whose qualities have been compared to the great Petr Cech, said: “I realised that if I was flying out on the Saturday morning, I’d need gloves and boots. I didn’t have either at home, so I started looking.
“I drove to Plzen and then to (Prague district) Eden, where I would have gone anyway to say goodbye and take one last look at the stadium.
“Now I’ve got everything I need, so I’ll pack up at home and head off.”
Kinsky eventually sealed a move worth £12.5million plus add-ons, signing a six-and-a-half-year contract.
But because he is still waiting on his work permit, which could take up to 48 hours to arrive, his chances of featuring against Liverpool are viewed as unlikely.
That means Brandon Austin, who waited nearly 10 years for his first Spurs appearance against Newcastle on Saturday, is set to start the Carabao Cup semi-final first leg on what will be his 26th birthday, provided Fraser Forster is still ill.
But after that, Kinsky will step in and look to make himself Ange Postecoglou’s go-to guy between the sticks.
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That is even when Guglielmo Vicario returns from a fractured foot in late February, with the Italian posting a video of himself out of his protective boot on Sunday.
Because ambitious Kinsky, nicknamed ‘Toni’, has not just been brought in as a back-up to Vicario, but to challenge him.
His move had been earmarked for the summer, when veteran Forster is out of contract, but got pushed forward following Vicario’s serious injury.
Kinsky is likely to be the first of a few January signings for injury-hit Spurs, who are also keen on a defender and attacker.
While Forster has struggled to play out from the back like Postecoglou wants, Kinsky’s footwork was a big attraction when he was identified by Spurs technical director Johan Lange.
His passing success rate of 83.9 per cent is better than any other goalkeeper with five appearances or more in this season’s Europa League.
Kinsky has been playing in that competition for Slavia, but due to a rule change, CAN also play in it for Spurs this term too.
The blond-haired starlet, who has perfect English, constantly listens to Czech rap and idolises late basketball superstar Kobe Bryant, was an outfield player as a kid.
But he moved in goal in a bid to follow in the footsteps of his dad, also called Antonin Kinsky who won five caps for the Czech national team and remains a huge influence on his son.
Kinsky Jnr’s 12 clean sheets in 19 league games has helped Slavia go seven points clear at the top of the Czech league.
It was his first season as Slavia’s No1, but it was back-to-back loan spells to small-town club MFK Vyskov between 2021-23 which toughened him up for first-team football.
Rostislav Horacek was Kinsky’s goalkeeping coach at Vyskov and remembers being blown away by the confident youngster’s potential after just “two or three training sessions”.
The 57-year-old said: “The guys in the pub laughed at me when I said that I had an 18-year-old boy in the second league who would one day play for the national team.
“But I was convinced of it. He has everything.
“He always looked forward to tough matches like a little kid looking forward to ice cream.”
Chelsea legend Cech is the benchmark for Czech keepers, having won 124 caps for his country in a stellar career, but Horacek sees an obvious comparison.
While he also gave an insight into the ability Kinsky – or ‘Tonda’ as he called him – has with both feet.
Horacek told Flashscore: “I asked him in training which foot he prefers, but he said it doesn’t matter. He kicks with both equally.
“At Slavia, he had a great defence in front of him. (It meant that) he often goes 40 minutes without a save and then has to quickly resolve a difficult situation.
“That is exactly what Petr Cech used to do at Chelsea. He had a strong defence in front of him, led by John Terry, but then had to show off with one or two saves. Tonda is strong in this.”
Tottenham's top 10 biggest signings: Hit or miss?
1) Tanguy Ndombele – £52.7m
Ndombele joined from Lyon in 2019 with huge expectations after shattering Tottenham’s transfer record.
But he would go on to play just 91 times for the club, scoring 10 goals and is now set to leave one year before the end of his contract.
2) Richarlison – £49.3m
Richarlison almost broke the £50m mark when he arrived from Everton in 2022 as Harry Kane’s back-up.
And while his tally of 12 goals this season was a significant increase on the three from his opening Spurs campaign, he is being linked with a departure this summer.
3) Brennan Johnson – £46.8m
Johnson was signed by Ange Postecoglou last summer and has impressed in patches during his first season in North London.
He scored five goals and 10 assists in 38 games and will look to build on that in the 2024/25 campaign.
4) Cristian Romero – £44.2m
Romero initially joined on loan from Atalanta in 2021, before his impressive displays saw him secure a permanent deal the following year.
He is two games shy of 100 for Spurs and, while he can be reckless with his tackling at times, is beginning to form a promising partnership with Micky van de Ven.
5) James Maddison – £39.4m
Maddison was handed Kane’s No10 shirt after arriving at Spurs and hit the ground running with three goals and five assists in his opening 11 matches.
But after getting injured against Chelsea in October, he failed to return with the same sharpness – managing just five goal contributions in 15 league matches as he missed out on England’s final 26-man squad for the Euros.
6) Davinson Sanchez – £35.7m
Sanchez joined Spurs from Ajax in 2017 and played more than 200 games across a six-year spell.
But he was always considered a somewhat erratic defender who did not play more than 20 games in a Premier League season from 2020 onwards.
7) Pedro Porro – £34m
Porro was another signing who originally arrived on loan in January 2023, before he signed permanently last summer.
He has 54 appearances for Spurs under his belt, scoring seven goals and impressing under Postecoglou this season.
8) Micky van de Ven – £34m
Rapid Dutch centre-back Van de Ven was named Spurs Player of the Season in his first campaign at the club.
His pace, athleticism, and technical ability on the ball have made him arguably Postecoglou’s best signing to date.
9) Moussa Sissoko – £29.8m
Sissoko came to North London for a substantial fee after being relegated with Newcastle and went on to enjoy five years at Tottenham, playing more than 200 games.
Unfortunately for the French midfielder, he is best-known for giving away a controversial penalty for handball in the first minute of Spurs’ 2-0 Champions League final defeat to Liverpool in 2019.
10) Giovani Lo Celso – £27.2m
Lo Celso joined on loan from Real Betis in 2019 – a deal that was made permanent the following season.
He has 10 goals and eight assists in 108 games, with some Spurs fans still unsure about the Argentine.