Tottenham Hotspur insider John Wenham is worried about right-back Djed Spence as a result of Antonio Conte’s latest comments regarding the summer signing.
The Lowdown: Spence’s omission
The 22-year-old was omitted from Conte’s matchday squad to face Fulham on Saturday, in which the Lilywhites clinched three points with a 2-1 victory.
Disappointingly, the £20m signing has only made a brief cameo so far in a Spurs shirt, coming on for a single minute against Nottingham Forest, the club with whom he spent last season on loan from Middlesbrough.
The Latest: Wenham fears for Spence
Wenham believes that Spence’s absence from Tottenham’s matchday squad on Saturday is a big cause for concern. When combined with recent comments made by Conte, the youngster’s situation at Hotspur Way seems less than ideal.
Speaking with Football Insider, the N17 insider claimed: “Conte’s comments are interesting.
“Conte said in the week, ‘Djed is a signing for the club, he is a great prospect for Tottenham but for sure if we want to win we need other signings, I want to be clear about this’.
“That’s not great for his confidence, is it? It now does seem the cameo he was given against Nottingham Forest was a token gesture against his old club rather than anything more.
“I would really like to see Spence get a run out at right-back ahead of Emerson Royal but it doesn’t seem like that is going to happen anytime soon.”
The Verdict: High to low for Spence
Spence’s lack of minutes at Tottenham has been a concern this season, with the 22-year-old having arrived on a massive high after achieving Premier League promotion with Forest just a few weeks prior.
In the Championship last season, the England under-21 international averaged 1.8 dribbles, 1.6 interceptions, 1.5 tackles and 1.4 clearances per game, finishing the campaign with an impressive 7.05 rating from WhoScored.
[freshpress-quiz id=”397976″]
However, Conte’s comments indicate that Spence will not play a significant role in his short-term plans going forward.
Therefore, if this does end up being the case, it may be possible that we see the 22-year-old heading out on loan to gain first-team experience in the near future.
