Antonio Conte realised midway through the first half that he needed to change things about if Tottenham were to get back into the game against Wolves.
Trailing 2-0 following early strikes from Raul Jimenez and Leander Dendoncker, the Spurs head coach sent new signing Dejan Kulusevski to warm up down the touchline.
Moments later the Swede was called back and told to get ready as Conte rolled the dice in hope of Tottenham clawing a goal back and turning the game on its head.
Ryan Sessegnon, on the far side of the pitch, looked over in shock when he saw his number illuminated on the fourth official's board and duly exited by the east stand.
The 21-year-old looked totally dejected as he walked down the touchline, receiving applause from the fans in the south stand as he made the long walk back to the dugout.
Conte made a beeline for the player as he edged ever closer to the technical area and took a few seconds with him before patting him on his back.
Not having an impact on the game in his 28 minutes of action with Tottenham struggling, Sessegnon certainly wasn't the worst on the pitch but his early omission was down to a tactical decision from Conte.
"I think that we conceded two goals. We conceded two goals and very difficult to comment," said the 52-year-old in his post-match press conference when asked if he has considered switching to a back four.
"Then after 30 mins I decided to change tactically and go man-to-man and I think we did well. But when you concede a goal you also have to understand the reason.
"If there is a tactical reason, if there are different reasons and at the moment we are struggling a bit with the confidence and the pressure.
"For me, I repeat, it is very difficult to speak about the pressure because the pressure is part of our job and I am used to living with it very well. But I know that there are different situations and we have to try and manage them much better.
"We have to improve in mental aspects. When I speak about improvement, it’s not only on the pitch but totally. I think we can improve."
Struggling to have any sort of impact in his first season at the club with injury limiting his availability, Sessegnon headed on loan to Bundesliga side Hoffenheim in 2020/21 and did well as he got some much-needed minutes under his belt in Germany.
Returning to Hotspur Way in the summer ready to kickstart his Spurs career under Nuno Espirito Santo, the versatile player unfortunately missed a large chunk of pre-season with a hamstring injury before sustaining another issue that saw him withdraw from England U21 duty in September and not take to the pitch again until November.
Having only played twice for Espirito Santo, the arrival of Conte seemed like the ideal opportunity for the 21-year-old to recapture his best form playing in his favoured left wing-back role.
Handed his chance from the off against NS Mura in the Europa Conference League by the new boss, Sessegnon spoke to the media ahead of the game and stated that it was a big opportunity for him to kickstart his Tottenham career.
"I think for me it's massive. Like you say, to really kickstart my career as it has been a very stop-start situation since I've been at the club for various reasons," explained the left wing-back.
"It's a big opportunity for me to go out and play and I'm looking forward to it. For the team, of course, we need to win the game for us to qualify."
He added: "When I was at Fulham I was young, playing every game and, like you say, people were speaking about me.
"In football things don't always go your way, ups and downs in your career. This could be my chance to really kickstart my career here and to progress.
"I'm very relaxed about the situation and just looking forward to the future."
Such a huge chance for him to catch Conte's eye at the start of his Tottenham tenure, Sessegnon was only on the field for a total of 31 minutes in Slovenia after picking up two silly yellow cards.
It really was a wasted opportunity and many fans were left concerned over his part in Conte's plans going on his avoidable dismissal.
Taking his chance the following month with a very good showing in the 2-2 draw against Liverpool, it was then just his luck that he sustained another injury problem towards the end of the game that kept him out for the following five matches.
More rotten luck was to come his way again on Sunday as Conte decided that the Roehampton-born player was the one to make way for Kulusevski in the 28th minute.
A decision that mirrored Jose Mourinho's call to hook Eric Dier in their Champions League clash against Olympiacos in November 2019 in the exact same minute, this time there was to be no comeback as Wolves held on to their two-goal lead.
A key few months for Sessegnon as he looks to ensure he remains part of Conte's plans going forward and finally become a Tottenham regular, he will be praying that things go his way between now and May.
Incredibly unfortunate to come off in the 28th minute against Wolves on Sunday, the biggest concern is that he never fulfils his undoubted potential in N17 if his wretched luck at Tottenham continues.
Suffering plenty of hiccups so far in his Tottenham career since Mauricio Pochettino signed him from Fulham in August 2019, Sessegnon simply cannot afford many more and needs luck to be finally on his side for once.
