Djed Spence has been speaking about his difficult journey to becoming a key player at Tottenham.

Tottenham star Djed Spence has opened up on his complicated rise to prominence in North London, admitting he was left hurt by a former head coach. Spence was signed by Tottenham from Nottingham Forest in 2022 and for no less than £20million.

While the then youngster was rocking up to North London feeling excited about his new club, the transfer was immediately dismissed by then head coach Antonio Conte, who made it clear that Spence would not be part of his immediate plans.

He said at the time: “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.”

It took three loan spells, but Spence has finally rebuilt his confidence and found his feet at Tottenham, becoming an important starter under Ange Postecoglou, but those comments from Conte are not easy to forget. "It wasn’t a nice feeling," Spence told the Rio Ferdinand Presents podcast. "Especially as I was coming to the club on a high, I was confident, I was buzzing, had just won promotion.

"Then it was like running into a brick wall. It shattered my confidence a bit, obviously I’m young. It’s not nice to hear. I knew it was rubbish at the time. It wasn’t a nice feeling. I was even going into the club like [puffs out cheeks] and, ‘What am I doing?’ I feel like whatever I did, that man [Conte] wasn’t happy about anything.

"Even if you did the right things, you were like, ‘Did I do the right thing?’ Cos he’s not really a complimenting guy. It gets to a point where you don’t really need validation from a coach. You just go, ‘Oh’. I probably had one conversation with him."

On trying to fit in at Spurs, he added: "In my first year at Tottenham, I feel I gave a bit too much respect to the players and the surroundings, because it’s Tottenham. I came from Forest, I’m going to the Premier League, a top-six club, and I thought, 'Phew, this is big'. I feel I gave them too much respect in regards I didn’t really be myself.

"When I went there, I saw players who were big names like Harry Kane and Sonny [Heung-min Son], and I didn’t want to step on anyone’s toes. But that was probably my biggest mistake, doing that and not expressing myself how I should have. I’d say this season [that's changed]. I’ve got no time to waste now. I’ve got to go get it, it’s time."

Working under Postecoglou

Spence has had a different experience working under Postecoglou, but he wasn’t a hit from the start, spending time out on loan with Girona last season. "When a new manager comes in you think, 'Alright, everyone's going to get a fair chance, he's going to have a look at everyone'," the defender added.

"With me, I don't think that was really the case. But that's part of the game of the game of football. Football's not fair. [Postecoglou] just said basically I need to go out and play and that's when I ended up going to Leeds.

"Sometimes you might not get a chance that you feel like you deserve. I've always known I was good enough. People say, 'It's good to see he's got a second chance and he's doing well'. I never really got the first chance. This is my first chance and I'm taking it. I'm just happy I worked hard, I stayed consistent and I was ready."

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