Spence made to wait
Djed Spence's wait for his first Tottenham start goes on. Appearing to be the perfect game for the right wing-back to come into the Spurs starting XI, Antonio Conte instead opted for Emerson Royal down the right as Matt Doherty dropped out of the side.
Amid all the high hopes Spurs fans had for Spence at the start of the season as they believed he could be the man to solve their right wing-back woes, they had only seen him play a grand total of 28 minutes across five appearances prior to the FA Cup tie. The decision to not start Spence understandably led to much frustration from the Tottenham faithful as they made their feelings perfectly clear.
The England Under-21 international's chance did arrive in the 77th minute as he replaced Ryan Sessegnon, with Emerson shifting over to the left flank. As expected, his introduction was met by a huge cheer from the home fans inside the ground.
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Spence may have endured a tough time since his move but the reaction from the Tottenham supporters shows that everyone is behind him and so keen on him making a huge name for himself in N17. He desperately needs more minutes to come his way.
Morecambe repeat
Last season's FA Cup third-round clash against Morecambe may well have had an impact on Conte's thinking for Saturday's cup tie against Portsmouth. In the same round 12 months ago, the Italian needed to bring on the big guns in the second half to get the job done with the League One outfit one goal to the good and on course to cause an almighty shock.
Opting to start with Harry Kane and Son Heung-min in attack this time around rather than making wholesale changes and giving those on the periphery a start, Spurs really found it difficult to break down Pompey in the opening 45 minutes. The south coast club made life incredibly difficult for the Lilywhites as they sat back and defended extremely well to frustrate the hosts.
As is usually the case with Tottenham this season, they were so much better after the break and duly took the lead following Kane's stunning strike from just inside the box. Dominating proceedings after that and mustering a number of attempts on goal, Spurs couldn't add a crucial second goal but, most importantly, they are in the hat for the fourth-round draw.
It would have been nice for Conte to go without Kane and Son playing 90 minutes, though.
Tottenham youngsters impress again
Bryan Gil and Pape Matar Sarr have come into Antonio Conte's thinking in recent weeks following some very good performances on the pitch. Having the chance to work with the head coach closely during the break in play for the World Cup, the duo did well in their friendly games and that has seen them come on in the Premier League as a result.
Gil excelled in Wednesday night's brilliant 4-0 win away at Crystal Palace and had a hand in three of the goals, with plenty of people also talking about Sarr after impressing in midfield for the final 25 minutes. Both were given their opportunity in the starting XI against Portsmouth and they again looked right at home in the Tottenham team.
Although he did see a couple of passes go straight out of play when he tried to move to the ball to the left, Sarr never dropped his head and always looked to get on the ball and played it forward. Gil, on the other hand, carried on from his showing at Selhurst Park and looked to be full of confidence as he ran at the Pompey backline.
Amid constant question marks about his size and the physicality of the game, he put himself about and caught the eye with one bit of play in the first half where he came out on top with the ball following a strong tackle in the middle of the pitch.
Kane closes in on record
Next Sunday's clash against Arsenal could be a very memorable one indeed for Kane. Closing to within two of Jimmy Greaves' club-record 266 goals for Tottenham on Wednesday night following his double at Palace, the striker is now one away from landmark figure after his stunner against Portsmouth.
The 29-year-old has an excellent record against the club's north London rivals and he will be licking his lips at the prospect of equalling or bettering the record at home to Mikel Arteta's side. Kane has been in amongst the goals since his World Cup heartache and all Arsenal fans probably know what is going to happen when the sides meet at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in the 4.30pm kick-off.
Devine home debut
There's just something about Alfie Devine and the FA Cup. Two years on from becoming the club's youngest-ever player and their youngest-ever goalscorer following his strike in their third-round clash away at non-league Marine, the midfielder was introduced in stoppage time by Conte.
Limited time for the 18-year-old to get on the ball and make things happen with the fourth official indicating three minutes of added time, he did impress with one bit of play as he held of his opponent and burst past another before playing the ball to the left flank. Not only was it his second-ever appearance for the club but it was also his senior home debut at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
He is clearly doing plenty right at present to come into Conte's thinking and get some playing time.
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