'They're human beings': Rich Hughes' sympathy for unwanted Portsmouth signing after family heartache

And when judging the Northern Irishman’s forgettable 13-month stint, the Blues’ sporting director stressed the importance of remembering footballers are also human beings.

Hughes oversaw the arrivals of Whyte and Anthony Scully from the Championship in the summer of 2023 to much fanfare, yet they would represent rare recruitment failures.

They eventually departed on transfer deadline day, with Scully joining Colchester on a season-long loan, while the remaining two years of Whyte’s contract were ripped up by mutual consent.

Certainly in the case of Whyte, the decision for his young family to remain in Belfast significantly impacted him during time on the south coast.

Hughes told The News: ‘I don’t know why it hasn’t worked out for Gavin, he’s a really talented boy and had worked with John before. There are enough situations in football that sometimes it can happen for reasons which we don’t know.

‘I think Gavin needs to reassess what he wants to do next and what it looks like. We wish him the best.

‘It’s very difficult to put an actual finger on it, it is what it is, sometimes it happens, good players have been to good clubs and it hasn’t worked out. You go to different clubs and it moves. It’s always going to be a fact of life.

‘You can see it in family circumstances, happiness and partners, spouses and kids getting settled. That’s not to say there’s any specific reason with Anthony and Gavin, but these can all be factors which loop into it.

‘They are human beings after all and everything needs to be right for people to perform and succeed.

‘What we urge everyone to remember is that while footballers are superheroes for people and fan favourites, they are also people and everything has to be right for everyone.

‘We can all probably empathise where we’ve had roles in bits of careers where you’re not enjoying it and you don't work to the best of your ability. When you feel settled it tends to click into place a bit better, we can’t ever lose sight of the human side.

‘Gavin leaving was in the best interests of everybody. There’s no animosity, I genuinely mean this, I spoke to Gavin on Saturday morning and he’s a good lad. It just hasn’t worked - and we wish him the absolute best with everything.

‘Hopefully he kicks on and shows everyone the player he can be again.’

Rather than being pivotal performers in the League One title-winning season, Whyte and Scully were instead largely kept out of the first-team’s wing positions.

The impressive form of Norwich loanee Abu Kamara and Paddy Lane ensured the young duo were preferred for the majority of the campaign.

In contrast, Whyte made just 12 league starts and Scully three, with both also suffering periods of injury and illness.

Hughes added: ‘We brought both of them in as players who we thought would feature heavily, but that’s the nature of building a competitive squad and how you set it up.

‘It is testament to Paddy Lane and Abu Kamara for keeping Anthony and Gavin out of the team, with both performing to a very high level.

‘I am sure Paddy and Abu will be the first to tell you that if they didn’t have the fierce competition underneath them it would be difficult for them to do what they did.’