Why isn’t Djed Spence playing more for Tottenham?

Djed Spence needn’t start looking interested until the 85th minute or so.

The England Under-21 international has played just three times for Tottenham Hotspur since making his life-changing move from Middlesbrough in the summer. Each appearance has been as an 89th-minute substitute in a match when the result has pretty much already been decided (with Spurs 2-0 up against Nottingham Forest and Everton, and 2-0 down at Manchester United).

This certainly won’t have been what Spence had in mind when completing a transfer he described as a “dream come true”.

There are caveats to his lack of playing time — he’s young and far from the finished product, he has experienced full internationals in Emerson Royal (Brazil) and Matt Doherty (Republic of Ireland) as competition for the right wing-back slot and Antonio Conte has referred to the 22-year-old as one for the future.

But in reality, Royal has been out of form, dropped and served a three-match suspension this season. Doherty’s first start didn’t come until October 1 due to fitness issues and it doesn’t exactly seem like Conte is sold on him either.

Yet Spence still hasn’t had a chance of note. In fact, Ivan Perisic, the very left-sided Ryan Sessegnon and forward Lucas Moura have played more minutes at right wing-back than Spence this season.

Perhaps his lack of opportunities shouldn’t be a surprise.

“The club wanted to do it, I said OK,” Conte said in July when asked about his new signing. “The club decided to buy him.”

Not exactly a ringing endorsement but Spence has attributes that Spurs have lacked at times this season. Spence wasn’t known for excelling with his attacking output, even in the Championship (two goals and five assists from 45 games, including play-offs, last year), but regaining possession via interceptions and recoveries, and carrying the ball out from the back (during Forest’s FA Cup run to the quarter-finals last season, he played 3.7 passes for every dribble attempted, showing a directness that Doherty and Royal, with 6.0 and 5.3 passes per dribble, don’t have at times, admittedly at a higher level) are two of his strengths.

He’s dynamic, pacey, strong, calm in possession, exciting and has a high ceiling for potential, but, as this detailed breakdown illustrates, he also needs to improve his decision-making, execution and end product.

In theory, he should be ideal for Spurs’ system, which has wing-backs at its heart week after week. It’s one of the reasons the club chased his signature for six months (Spence was telling team-mates as far back as January that he was joining Spurs) and why Chelsea and (unsurprisingly) Forest wanted to sign him, albeit it’s believed Forest never actually tabled a bid.

Tonight, he returns to the scene of his big breakthrough season, the City Ground, for a Carabao Cup tie. It’s his second visit back there this season — he was given a warm reception when doing so for a Premier League game in August, where he made one of his three Spurs appearances.

Having waited so long for game time, if he doesn’t start tonight (and with Doherty still short of minutes, that’s no guarantee) you can’t help but feel it will be a chastening experience for a player whose confidence could have been knocked by what’s unfolded over the past few months, having played 80 league games in the previous two seasons for Middlesbrough and Forest in the Championship.

However, those close to Spence say the noise around the player and the frustration of Spurs supporters at his lack of games isn’t necessarily reflected by the man himself. Every player wants to play but Spence is said to understand the need for patience and appreciates he has plenty to learn, which he will do alongside top-level players and under the guidance of a world-class manager.

Staff at the club are also believed to be impressed with his work ethic (Spence has been doing extra training after regular sessions) and of his progression. Spence has had problems in the past (his former boss at Boro, Neil Warnock, said Spence “needed to sort himself out” and that he could end up at the top or in non-League; at Forest, there were said to be timekeeping issues) but at Spurs, no problems have resurfaced.

With the January window approaching, Spence could go out on loan. Tottenham’s progression in the cups (they could play five Carabao/FA Cup matches in January if they go through) may dictate what happens, but as of yet those conversations haven’t taken place. There will be Premier League interest should that be the case given his stellar 2021-22 campaign.

“For our young players, every game is the game to trust in him,” assistant boss Cristian Stellini, sitting in for Conte, said during Tuesday’s pre-Forest press conference.

“If we think the League Cup is important, we need the players who are ready. Djed Spence is one of those for sure, he’s working hard.

“Players that arrive from the Championship need more time. When you play in the Championship, your step up is so big, you need to work. It’s about a lot of situations.

“It’s not only technically and tactically, he’s working hard and we’re happy with him. Generally it’s difficult for a player to come from the Championship and to be ready and to play with the pressure at first.”

Conte would no doubt have preferred to sign a ready-made right wing-back in the summer and it’s a position where the club have looked to upgrade, with Adama Traore twice the subject of transfer approaches. Instead, for £12.5million ($14.5m), plus another £7.5m in add-ons, he got Spence, a fairly low-risk signing, not on substantial wages, who added to their homegrown quota.

Low risk, but with the potential for high reward. To use Conte’s favourite word, patience is required here.

Perhaps on Wednesday night we’ll get another glimpse of that potential and, for Spence’s sake, earlier than in the 89th minute.

(Top photo: Vincent Mignott/DeFodi Images via Getty Images)