Tottenham boss Jose Mourinho's glowing verdict on Portsmouth signing Harvey White

The midfielder has joined Pompey on loan for the rest of the 2020-21 campaign and is held in high regard by the Premier League title-chasers.

Despite being the tender age of 19, White has rubbed shoulders with Harry Kane, Son Heung-min and Co. on a daily basis since the summer.

He was handed a start in a 4-1 friendly victory over Reading in August, which was a big step forward in his development.

And while Mourinho stopped short of saying the England youth international was ready for the top flight, he heaped praise on White's ability after the win.

The Premier League and Champions League winning-boss told Spurs’ website: ‘He’s a kid but he’s a talented kid. Is he ready for the responsibilities, for the intensity, for the physicality of the Premier League? No.

‘But is he ready to train with us every day to have this evolution and to play in these matches and eventually in some official matches where we need to rotate players? Yes, he is, so good for him.’

White clearly continued to catch the eye of Mourinho in training, trusting him to be on the bench in two Europa League matches.

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He was then rewarded with his debut as a substitute in a 3-1 win over Ludogorets in November.

White’s progress earned him a new four-year deal at the Londoners only weeks later, committing his future until 2024.

Then came his full debut in Spurs’ 5-0 defeat of non-league Marine in the FA Cup third round earlier this month.

Ahead of the tie, Mourinho reiterated that the Maidstone-born lad doesn’t look out of place around a host of top-class stars in training.

He said: ‘Harvey and Jack (Clarke) they are under-23s, they play under-23s when we feel that they should go there and take minutes but they are professionals.

‘They belong with the first-team squad, they train with the first-team squad since day one in pre-season.

‘They played in the Europa League so let’s look at them as firs- team players and of course they will be involved in the game but they are involved so many times so it’s nothing new.’