Spence could be a sensation at Spurs under Conte

Spurs have been immensely busy in this year’s Summer transfer window and Djed Spence is the latest to put pen to paper and secure a move to the North London club. Spence became Tolttenham’s sixth signing of the window for a fee of £12.5 million, rising to £20 million with add-ons, after an impressive season at Nottingham Forest that helped the club earn promotion and a return to England’s top flight. The Englishman is very much tailored to Antonio Conte’s style of play; he might not have been signed by his predecessors but he ticks all the boxes for a wing-back. He’s got height, pace, strength and skill and has proved on many occasions for the former Championship side last year that there is plenty to work with from the 21-year-old. Despite being an unknown entity at the top level there is reason to be optimistic when it comes to Spence’s exploits this season. But there is no greater litmus test than rubbing shoulders with the very best in the Premier League every Saturday and competing on Europe’s biggest stage in the Champions League midweek. So just how well will the youngster cope with the pressure of performing for a Spurs side desperate for silverware?

Why Spurs brought him in

If you think Spence can take Spurs over the edge and become title contenders, it’s easy to place a bet online on spurs to win the league, even those who enjoy betting with PayPal. Spence is coming off his best season to date whilst on loan at Forest and is showing signs of realizing the potential so many clubs have seen in him but it wasn’t always smooth sailing. He was released by Fulham’s academy and joined Middlesbrough, while two other right-backs were kept on.

When on Teeside he initially struggled for game time, not breaking into the first team until the 2019-20 season. But he made the most of his opportunity when he did play. Just one month later he won the EFL Young Player of the Month after also scoring his first goal and helping Middlesbrough keep three clean sheets. Jonathan Woodgate’s departure shortly after Project Restart proved to be the beginning of the end for his time up north. Although Spence played 38 times under Warnock the following season, his attacking style of play was often stifled by his manager’s conservatism.

He moved onto Forest and flourished in Steve Cooper’s side reaching the Premier League for the first time since 1999, there is optimism though that Conte can take Spence’s game to the next level. He made 50 appearances in all competitions, impressing in the FA Cup in particular, running Arsenal ragged in a 1-0 victory in the third round, before scoring against Leicester to dump the Foxes out in a 4-1 thrashing. Spence registered three goals and five assists and also made his England Under 21 debut in March in a 3-0 win against Albania. He has the talent but a big determinant of his time at Tottenham will be how he controls his own temperament with a not-so forgiving figure in Conte.

It’s a golden opportunity to learn from one of the best coaches in the world who has won trophies all over Europe. Conte’s 3-4-3 system will suit Spence’s attacking style of play. His ability to progress with the ball and beat players one-on-one is something that Tottenham’s other right wing-backs don’t have. While he is known more for his attacking prowess, he is solid defensively too, not allowing attacking players to get past him too often. The potential is there to grow his game and Conte could prove the perfect coach to get it out of him during his spell at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

What will he bring to Spurs?

Conte’s first comments on the 21-year-old were hardly the ringing endorsement the new signing would have been hoping for. The Italian boss has never strayed away from making his opinion known and he has been typically forward in admitting that the club was very much the responsible party for bringing Spence through the doors of the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Speaking at a press conference Conte said: “For the club, it’s not simple to go into the transfer market and sign players free like Perisic and Forster and sign players on loan like Lenglet, and to sign players with money like Richarlison and Bissouma and Spence. Spence is an investment of the club. The club wanted to do it. I said OK, this player is young, but he showed he can become a good, important player for us. The club decided to buy him.”

Despite Conte being clear on whose decision it was to bring him in, whether he cares to admit it or not, Spence has all the potential to develop into a quality player and a valuable asset in Tottenham’s pursuit of a trophy in 2022/23. He has a battle on his hands with Doherty and Perisic to earn a starting spot but his 19-minute cameo at Ibrox in Spurs’ pre-season friendly with Rangers showed everything the modern manager is looking for in a wingback; a brilliant last-gasp tackle with his first touch and a constant lookout for opportunities to move forward and take players on with the ball down the right channel. He had more take-ons last season while on loan at Nottingham Forest than all of Spurs’ four wing-backs combined and he created chances galore for his teammates during the campaign. There is still work to be done though and Conte will want him to press forward as much as possible. Veteran Ivan Perisic could prove vital in nurturing the youngster’s talent and passing on knowledge of what is needed from him having worked as a wingback with Conte during his spell with Inter Milan. Given the right time to iron out the kinks in his game, his attacking instincts will be a useful tool in Tottenham’s quest for silverware this season.