Kyle Walker-Peters was a half-time substitute in Tottenham Hotspur’s 1-1 draw at Newport County.
Very few Tottenham Hotspur players emerged from Saturday’s 1-1 draw at Newport County with much credit.
Spurs were eight minutes away from being the victims of a famous giant-killing in the FA Cup, but Harry Kane struck a late equaliser to ensure that Newport head to Wembley next month for a fourth-round replay.
Manager Mauricio Pochettino chose a strong first XI in which fringe players were fused with the heavy hitters like Kane, Victor Wanyama and Jan Vertonghen.
One fringe player who didn’t cover himself in glory was the highly-rated full-back Kyle Walker-Peters.
The 20-year-old was hooked at half-time by Pochettino and, given how it was against a League Two side, you wonder if the humiliation of being a half-time sub will have damaged the youngster’s confidence.
It doesn’t make Walker-Peters any less of an exciting prospect, but young players need a stoicism to supplement their talent and this is where the Tottenham academy product needs to show a bit of mental strength and draw a line under what happened at Rodney Parade.
Pochettino, who dismissed suggestions that the sub was linked to injury (Football London), is a terrific man-manager, but it’s normal to ask how such a decision could affect the player.
Walker-Peters may have already been disappointed not to figure more for the Lilywhites this season, having only made one Premier League appearance since starting the opening-day win at Newcastle, and it’s the Argentine’s job to weed out moments of self-doubt and reassure him.
Going by what happened on Saturday, he’s going to need all the reassurance he can get.
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