Spurs defender Connor Ogilvie hopes a second loan spell with the Gills will take his game to another level.

The 22-year-old made his first appearance for the Gills since returning to the club on Tuesday, playing centre-half in the 4-0 Checkatrade Trophy defeat at Portsmouth.

He’s hoping another spell in the third tier will see him become a better player.

He said: “I have only played a couple of games this season, so to get more minutes will help towards my fitness and hopefully we can improve on the performance (on Tuesday).

“I wanted to come back, I enjoyed my time here last time and I am glad it is done. There was talk of other clubs but my main one was to come back here and get games.

“You can’t beat playing first team football. The under-23s is a lot different to playing out there with men and fighting for three points every week. I was playing u-23 Premier League, it is not the same as playing League 1 and to be back is vital for my improvement.”

Despite minimal game time, Ogilvie insists his fitness is good.

“I felt alright,” he said, after playing the full game on Tuesday night.

“I didn’t feel unfit. I felt good and I just want to improve every time I step onto the pitch.

“I am happy to be back with the boys. Knowing everyone here you just slot straight back in, like it was before, that does help.”

Alex Lacey and Bradley Garmston will both now be facing extra competition for their places and Ogilvie knows that he isn’t guaranteed a start, even if he has dropped down from a Premier League side.

“I am up for the challenge here,” he said, adding: “I will fight for my position and see how it goes.

“There is definitely strength in depth, the boys have been doing well and I have kept an eye on their results.

“Hopefully we can push forward and get as high as we can. You have to aim for the stars and see where you come, you want to finish as high as possible.”

Reflecting on his first game back, a 4-0 defeat to Portsmouth, he said: “Until they scored we were well in it, we were playing the ball well, moving it and just didn’t get that chance upfront, but goals change games. It is disappointing.

“It was a young team but some of the boys are top class, it is not about how old you are, it is about how good you are, we will assess it and go again Saturday.