After Kieran Trippier made the rather surprising move to La Liga giants Atletico Madrid, a big chance opened up for Kyle Walker-Peters to stake his claim as a real contender for that starting right-back role at Tottenham.

His only genuine competition for the place was of course Serge Aurier, and the Ivory Coast international has built up a reputation for not being the most reliable defensively - the numerous penalties he has conceded are a testament to that.

So when Trippier's departure was confirmed, Walker-Peters would surely have fancied his chances of stepping into the shoes of the England international and becoming a permanent fixture under Mauricio Pochettino.

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Unfortunately for the £9m-rated ace, that just didn't turn out to be the case.

He played just three times in the Premier League for the north London side, and all of those appearances came in the first three games of the season, when he featured against Aston Villa, Manchester City and Newcastle respectively.

And then in the January transfer window, even despite new manager Jose Mourinho not having any other specialised cover for the position, the decision was taken to allow Walker-Peters to leave the club on loan.

But his short spell at Southampton - disrupted of course by the ongoing situation surrounding football - has been nothing short of a nightmare.

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He played 73 minutes in the 2-1 defeat to Burnley in the top-flight, but has been named on the bench twice, and not even in the match-day squad on the other two occasions.

The fact is Walker-Peters had a great chance to really establish himself as another Spurs academy product to make a name for themselves in the first-team.

But even with the door being opened by Trippier's exit, he fluffed his chance big time, and his lack of action for the Saints speaks volumes. The time has come for Spurs to be ruthless with him this summer.

Meanwhile, Spurs must beat the competition to sign this French starlet.