As is natural in the world of football, not every signing is going to be a superstar, and in the case of Djed Spence, the last few years have seen the full back struggle at numerous clubs since getting his big move.
Djed Spence’s struggles in England
Since peaking with a Nottingham Forest loan spell that saw Spence secure promotion to the Premier League, the fullback has suffered a swift spiral of decline.
Joining Tottenham Hotspur next, Spence struggled for game time and quickly fell out of favour in North London. Making just six appearances during his time with Spurs, he rapidly became an outcast in N17 with reported issues with coach Antonio Conte only adding to this problem.
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Speaking on his time at Spurs, Spence told The Athletic: “I didn’t have a great time. I went there and I didn’t play, so obviously it was hard for me. When you sign somewhere as a player for a big club, you want to be filled with confidence and welcomed with open arms, as I was, but it just didn’t feel right when I went there. Things didn’t go well as I planned.”
Speaking specifically about Conte, Spence said: “I didn’t really have a relationship with him, to be honest. He’s a coach that has his way. I don’t think he has much of a relationship with his players. It’s come into training and train — and that’s pretty much it”.
Following the lack of action at Spurs, the 23-year-old was then shipped off to Leeds United in the summer with the vision for to get some much-needed game time. A return to the Championship was supposed to be Spence back in familiar territory, but things only seemed to get worse once the defender arrived at Elland Road.
Spence’s seven-game spell with the Whites saw him struggle for minutes and ultimately sent back to Spurs during the January window. Opting to show Spence the door and bring in Burnley’s Connor Roberts, Daniel Farke rationalised this move, hinting at a lack of professionalism.
“Obviously it’s important, the potential and the quality of the player but also it’s professionalism, it’s discipline, it’s workload on and off the pitch. And also the soft skills, so also if he’s positive and committed, good for the group and engaged with these topics, to paint then more or less a picture.
“We decided ‘okay, this is the player we want in our group and want to represent Leeds United’. But our demands are very, very high and we don’t differ between loan players and permanent players, so we are pretty picky in this topic.”
The January window saw Spence once again moved on as the fullback joined Italian side Genoa. Whilst many Leeds fans thought this spell would suffer the same fate as his time at Elland Road, he appears to have caught the eye of the Italian media for all the right reasons.
Spence earns praise for his work ethic in Italy
During Genoa’s 0-0 draw against Juventus last weekend, Italian outlet calciomercato delivered their verdict on each team’s players. Earning a clean sheet against the Italian giants saw Genoa move ten points away from the drop zone, all but confirming their status as a Serie A side next season.
Whilst professionalism and work rate had been the main failures of Spence’s time with Leeds, the Italian press specifically praised the defender as a player who “never gives up”. It appears that the fullback has taken his recent struggles in his stride and now looks to be rebuilding his career in Italy.
A shock to Leeds and Spurs fans who saw Spence as a lost cause, it now appears that the 23-year-old is set to get his career back on track, potentially returning to North London with the right kind of chip on his shoulder.
