---
title: "Tottenham: Pundit says possible Djed Spence exit would raise eyebrows"
canonical: "https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/tottenham-premier-league-djed-spence-transfers-news-updates/"
type: "post"
language: "en-GB"
author: "Henry Jackson"
section: "Premier League News"
published: "2022-09-25T13:30:34Z"
modified: "2022-09-25T13:30:34Z"
---

# Tottenham: Pundit says possible Djed Spence exit would raise eyebrows

**[Tottenham](https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/tottenham-hotspur-news/) loaning out Djed Spence so soon into his Spurs career would raise a lot of eyebrows, according to former Leeds United striker Noel Whelan.**

### The Lowdown: Spence linked with loan move

The right-back traded Middlesbrough for Spurs during the summer transfer window, as Antonio Conte made an exciting addition to his squad.

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Spence excelled on loan at Nottingham Forest last season, [scoring twice and registering four assists](https://www.whoscored.com/Players/362219/History/Djed-Spence), but he has struggled to get going at his new club.

Antonio Conte has [admitted](https://www.football.london/tottenham-hotspur-fc/news/harry-kane-contract-conte-juventus-25063674) that he hasn’t adjusted well to his surroundings and a January loan move has been [mooted](https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/tottenham-hotspur-news/tottenham-premier-league-djed-spence-transfer-news-updates/) recently.

### The Latest: Whelan surprised by news

Speaking to [*Football Insider*](https://www.footballinsider247.com/pundit-cant-believe-djed-spence-could-quit-tottenham-in-january-after-new-development/), Whelan admitted it would be a surprising decision for Spence to be loaned out in the next transfer window:

> “I think there would be a lot of eyebrows raised if he were to go out on loan now. The fans might question why they’ve spent that amount of money on a player just to loan him out.
>
> “Perisic and Doherty are both very experienced, and Royal really seems to have stepped up his game. There’s competition for places at Spurs, which is brilliant – and I’m sure Conte is loving all that rivalry too.
>
> “Does Spence need to bide his time and maybe work harder? Probably, yeah. You can’t change a winning side too much. This is competition he knew he was going to have. He was coming into a team full of international stars.
>
> “He won’t have thought he could walk straight into that side, absolutely not.”

[Tottenham latest news!](https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/tottenham-latest-news-3/)

### The Verdict: Could be best for him

While this is far from ideal – the hope was that Spence would provide genuine competition at right-back – it could be that another loan move makes sense in January.

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The leap from the Championship to the [Premier League](https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/premier-league-news/) is enormous, especially when you go straight to a top-four club, and the 22-year-old could simply need more time to mature as a player, having been [hailed](https://www.nottinghampost.com/sport/football/football-news/ian-wright-djed-spence-arsenal-6495826) as ‘combative’ by Ian Wright.

In an ideal world, Spence will show Conte that he is worth persevering with before January, staying put at Spurs, but if a temporary move is best for his development, that is the best thing to do.