Tottenham manager Jose Mourinho maintained young striker Troy Parrott is "not ready" for regular first-team football.
Spurs have lost three on the bounce since Heung-min Son's injury further worsened their striker crisis, with Harry Kane ruled out for a number of months since New Year's Day.
Fans have called for the 18-year-old, who recently signed a new contract with the club, to get more chances given the lack of another striker in the first-team squad.
But Mourinho, who gave Parrott a run out in the closing stages of Sunday's loss to Wolves, insists it is not yet time.
"He's not ready," Mourinho told reporters after the game. "He's not ready.
"He's a good kid we want to help, not only on the pitch but off it. He's a kid who's going to have real opportunity but when we decide it's right.
"He was on the bench because Lamela said he was not ready to go on it. He was on the bench so for the past five minutes we brought him on to give some more space for Dele."
