Highly-rated ex-Portsmouth loanee handed first league squad involvement in eight months as Spurs' draw at Southampton

Yet on Tuesday, Harvey White was finally presented with a first squad involvement in the league since Pompey’s defeat to Accrington in May.

And, ironically, it was back on the south coast, with an unused substitute outing at St Mary’s in Spurs’ 1-1 draw.

The England under-18 international arrived at Pompey in January 2020 on loan for the remainder of the campaign.

He proceeded to total 22 appearances under Kenny Jackett and Danny Cowley, of which just six were starts.

There was also a well-taken winner at Oxford United in February 2020, which lifted Jackett’s men into fourth in League One.

Yet White didn’t quite influence matches as consistently as it was hoped, culminating with a farewell substitute performance in the final day 1-0 loss against Accrington in 2020-21.

That outcome saw Cowley’s men drop out of the play-off spots at the death, subsequently finishing a disappointing eighth.

Since returning to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in the summer, the midfielder has rejoined the under-21s and failed to make a first-team appearance.

He made three starts for the under-21s in their Papa John’s Trophy elimination at the group stage, scoring twice in a 4-3 win at Stevenage.

However, the closest he had come to the first-team was three times being named on the bench in their Europa Conference League campaign, albeit never appearing.

Then, on Tuesday at St Mary’s, White was listed as a substitute for Spurs in the Premier League for the first time this season.

He has previously featured twice for their first-team – both arriving last season.

The promising midfielder was handed an eight-minute cameo from the bench in their 4-0 triumph over Ludogorets in the Europa League in November 2020.

Then he made his FA Cup bow in a 5-0 victory at Marine in January 2021, completing the full 90 minutes.

It would be Pompey where White would make his Football League entrance, as a half-time substitute in a 4-0 Fratton Park defeat to Hull.

He went on to start in the rearranged 2020 Papa John’s Trophy final against Salford at Wembley in March 2021.

No doubt Spurs will now be seeking a loan destination for the youngster when January’s transfer window opens.

White signed a new deal with the Premier League club in December 2020, tying him to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium until the summer of 2024.

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