This article is part of Football FanCast's Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba's haircuts to League Two relegation battles...

Jose Mourinho teased Tottenham Hotspur fans earlier this week.

Talking about the possibility of Troy Parrott playing against Bayern Munich, he obfuscated the question, insisting, merely, that Harry Kane wouldn’t.

He stayed true to his word on the latter – Kane was left at home as Spurs lost 3-1 in Germany – but Parrott did not see a single minute on the pitch.

Perhaps that was always the plan.

No clues whatsoever: Which seasons do these iconic Spurs images belong to?

But it felt like an anti-climax, particularly when the team came through. Lucas Moura was up front on his own, supported by Christian Eriksen, Giovani Lo Celso and Ryan Sessegnon.

The latter of that trio had an excellent game and scored a superb first-half goal, handing Mourinho something of a headache as the Premier League season continues apace.

But there were opportunities to bring Parrott, the Republic of Ireland international who has shown so much promise in the youth teams, on for his debut.

With Spurs 2-1 down and in need of an out-and-out striker, he could have been introduced.

Instead, Son Heung-Min – a player we know all about – replaced Lucas and Oliver Skipp came on for Lo Celso. The final change of the night saw Eric Dier – awful, throughout the evening – replaced by Victor Wanyama.

It was something of a head-scratcher.

This felt like the perfect low-pressure environment in which Parrott could have thrived. Why not bring him on, result be damned, and see if he could have forced his way into first-team contention?

It smacked of Mourinho being too cautious, too wary of letting the result become embarrassing, as it did in north London when his predecessor, Mauricio Pochettino, saw his side thrashed 7-2 by the German giants.

The problem with that was the tease beforehand, the little knowing wink to supporters who wanted to see a 17-year-old make his European debut, less than a week after making his Premier League bow against Burnley.

It isn’t a broken promise, not really, because Mourinho never pledged to play Parrott. In fact, he said “I don’t know” when asked if he would play.

But hopes were raised and then dashed on a night where a backup Spurs XI didn’t really do all that much to worry Bayern or play themselves into contention.

Only Sessegnon really emerged with any credit and Parrott will fly back to England with his team-mates with zero first-team Champions League minutes under his belt.

More than anything, that feels like a missed opportunity.

Meanwhile, Spurs fans have reacted to a major update on Harry Kane.