Tottenham called off a deal at the end of deadline day to let young midfielder Harvey White leave on loan, according to a club insider.
Spurs boss Antonio Conte made player exits a vital part of his plan for the January transfer window. In fact, in the end, he managed to ship four first-team players out, on a mix of loan and permanent deals.
Dele Alli signed permanently for Everton as he looks to rebuild his career. Bryan Gil, meanwhile, was among those who left until the end of the season.
According to Tottenham insider John Wenham, though, the north London also planned to let White leave on loan.
The 20-year-old, who stars for the club’s Under-23s side, has made the first-team bench on seven occasions this season.
Spurs had held talks with Portsmouth – who had White on loan last season – as well as Luton, Sunderland and Hull. In the end, though, Wenham has now claimed that the Englishman will get an exciting chance to make his mark in the first team.
“From what I’m told, Tottenham had a loan deal agreed for White,” Wenham told Football Insider. “Right up until one hour to go on deadline day, something was pencilled in.
“I don’t think Tottenham could believe their luck that they got rid of [Giovani] Lo Celso, [Tanguy] Ndombele and Alli.
Harvey White Tottenham exit shelved
“We know that was the aim but in reality, I never thought all three would go. So now we are down three midfielders and I think that was unexpected.
“White is the most advanced of our academy players and to work with the first team for the next six months might be the best for him.
“He will be in there every day working with [Pierre-Emile] Hojbjerg and [Rodrigo] Bentancur which is exciting.”
White has made his name in the club’s Under-23s team. This season, he has captained the side on 12 occasions, chipping in with five goals and six assists.
Should he make it into the first team soon, he would be following in the footsteps of fellow former academy star Oliver Skipp.
Conte reasons for axing Ndombele
French midfielder Ndombele was arguably the most high-profile Tottenham departure on transfer deadline day.
The 25-year-old signed for Spurs in 2019 as their club-record arrival from Lyon.
However, he has failed to gel with Tottenham boss Conte, as well as Nuno Espirito Santo and Jose Mourinho before the Italian.
As such, former Spurs defender Alan Hutton has explained why he thinks Conte let Ndombele return to Lyon on loan.
“I think it’s the best they could have done in a bad situation,” the pundit said.
“Conte isn’t the type of guy who wants players that aren’t playing at 110 per cent anywhere near the squad.
“Ndombele seems that type of character. He’s a free spirit and wants to do his own thing. Conte couldn’t stand that.”
Tottenham return to action on Wednesday when facing Southampton in the Premier League.
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