Tottenham have finally announced the signing of Djed Spence from Middlesbrough following his hugely impressive loan at Nottingham Forest last season.
The England Under-21 international looks one of the biggest prospects in the country, and is the latest in a long line of impressive signings made by Spurs this summer, alongside big names like Richarlison and Yves Bissouma.
Tottenham fans will no doubt be excited by Spence’s arrival, and some Manchester United fans might be wondering why their club didn’t pursue a deal when they could do with an upgrade on Aaron Wan-Bissaka.
Fabrizio Romano has revealed that Man Utd’s search for a new right-back will hinge on whether or not Wan-Bissaka stays, but that means they’ve now missed their chance to sign Spence.
Still, ex-Red Devil Luke Chadwick is not entirely convinced Spence would have been ready to move to Old Trafford.
The 21-year-old will be in his first season in the Premier League, and Chadwick expects some figures at United might have been unsure about signing him at this early stage in his career.
“Djed Spence was outstanding last season for Nottingham Forest, one of the most impressive players in the Championship,” Chadwick told CaughtOffside.
“He’s got fantastic energy levels, gets up and down the pitch really well. We’ve seen him do it against big teams as well, putting in strong performances against Arsenal, Leicester and Liverpool in that FA Cup run.
“Ten Hag and Man United will be making decisions on transfers, and maybe they felt he was a bit too unproven. He’s never played in the Premier League, so even though I think he’s a fantastic talent, maybe we need to see how he adapts to playing against some of the best players in the world every week. I’m not hugely surprised they haven’t gone after him.
“It’ll be interesting to see how he develops at Tottenham and if he plays all the time. He’s a hugely talented young player, but let’s see how he settles at Spurs.”
