Tottenham injury boost: Jun'ai Byfield returns from injury after Champions League debut last season
A Tottenham starlet, who has already made three senior appearances for the Lilywhites at just 17 years of age, has now put his injury woes behind him to make a return to the pitch. While Spurs fans are clamouring to see 18-year-old Luca Williams-Barnett handed his Premier League debut, another forgotten Spurs teenager already made his bow in the competition last season.
Tottenham's U21s lost to Cheltenham Town in Tuesday's EFL Trophy match, which the League Two side won 7-6 on penalties after the game was tied 2-2 in normal time. The game received a lot of attention for Richarlison netting his first goal of the season and celebrating with typical enthusiasm.
Cheltenham boss Steve Cotterill lavished praise on the Brazilian star's attitude in the U21s fixture after being frozen out of the first team by Roberto De Zerbi. However, the game was also an important milestone for another Spurs youngster, who has been nursing an injury since the end of last season.
MORE SPURS STORIES Although the 17-year-old is a centre-back by trade, he played in midfield and at right-back for the senior side, showcasing his versatility, and he did not look out of place at the highest level. Byfield suffered a back injury in May, which saw him miss the entirety of pre-season and the campaign so far.
The midfielder returned to the Tottenham U21 side in their EFL Trophy clash at Cheltenham, which was his first competitive minutes in five months. The teenager came on as a substitute on 70 minutes, and he also took a penalty during the extended shootout, but his attempt was unfortunately saved.
However, the important thing was the fact that the midfielder came out of it unscathed, and he will now look to work his way back to the levels he reached last season. Seven Spurs youngsters may be knocking on the first-team door Luca Williams-Barnett, Tye Hall, Callum Olusesi, and Tyrese Hall were all absent for the U21s against Cheltenham, and it was later revealed that it was because they had travelled with the Spurs squad to Marbella for the warm-weather training camp.
It was later confirmed by Alasdair Gold that Rio Kyerematen, Reiss-Elliott Parris and 18-year-old goalkeeper Dylan Thompson are also part of the first-team training camp. That suggests that these academy youngsters have caught De Zerbi's eye this season, and Byfield will be hoping to do the same over the coming weeks and months.