Ghanaian defender Mohammed Salisu saw 90 minutes of action as Southampton suffered a 2-1 away defeat to Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League on Wednesday.
Deployed in an unusual left-back position, the 22-year-old, typically a centre-back, held his own against Gareth Bale on the left but Heung-Min Son's penalty on the stroke of full-time handed The Lilywhites victory in the matchday 29 fixture.
The win has taken Tottenham to sixth on the league table while Southampton stay in 14th spot.
The midweek fixture handed Salisu a return to The Saints' line-up for the first time since featuring in a 5-2 thrashing at the hands of Manchester City on March 10. It was his fifth start for the club since his transfer last summer and his seventh Premier League appearance in all.
Danny Ings opened the scoring for Southampton on the day on the half-hour mark but Bale drew Spurs level at the strike of the hour.
The game appeared headed for a draw until the referee awarded The Lilywhites a late penalty for a foul by Moussa Djenepo. South Korea star Son stepped up and neatly converted to win all three points for his side at the death.
Salisu joined Southampton from Spanish outfit Real Valladolid on a four-year contract last August, having snubbed an offer from French club Stade Rennais and reportedly from Manchester United, Atletico Madrid, Real Madrid and Barcelona. The move was worth a reported £10.9 million.
Owing to fitness concerns, he had to wait for six months after his move to make his debut, the big day coming against Wolverhampton Wanderers in the FA Cup.
He made his Premier League bow coincidentally against the same side three days later before making his full league debut against Chelsea in a 1-1 draw.
With his injury woes behind him, Salisu is likely to be called up for a possible Ghana debut in June as the Black Stars are set to take on Ethiopia and South Africa in the 2022 World Cup qualifiers.
He received his maiden Black Stars call-up in 2019 but turned down the invitation over fitness concerns.
