Antonio Conte has claimed that Destiny Udogie is a prospect for the future of Tottenham Hotspur, but needs to develop much like fellow signing Djed Spence.
Spurs snapped up Udogie from Udinese this week, paying £15m plus performance-related add-ons for the 19-year-old before loaning him back to the Serie A side (Sky Sports).
With Udogie (19) and Spence (22), it appears the wing-back roles in North London are bright for the future, although Conte was keen to point out just that, claiming that Udogie is a ‘player for the future not the present’.
Spence scored three and assisted five for Nottingham Forest in a marauding right-wing-back role last season (TransferMarkt), while Udogie managed five goals and three assists from the left (TransferMarkt).
However, with the likes of Emerson Royal, Matt Doherty, Ivan Perisic and Ryan Sessegnon providing more experience on either flank, Spence and Udogie have a lot of work to do to break into Conte’s plans.
On Udogie signing, Conte said (Football London): “You said it well, he’s a player for the future. I think he is a good prospect for Tottenham because we are talking about a young player.
“For sure this player needs to develop like Spence and in my opinion a good investment for the club. Now he continues to play in this season with Udinese and in this way he has the possibility to play regularly.
“When you are young you need to play to improve your experience. For sure we are talking about a good prospect, but we are talking about a player for the future not for the present. He has to develop and to grow with a group of players with more experience.”
Spurs Web Opinion:
This transfer window has been a nice blend of players for the future and players to improve Conte now, which is always a good compromise when dealing with traditionally short-term managers.
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