The Athletic have revealed that Tottenham Hotspur saw off competition from Chelsea to land Djed Spence this summer.
Spence became Tottenham’s sixth signing of the summer transfer window, with the North London club agreeing on an initial fee of £12.5m with Middlesbrough for the England Under-21 international, which could potentially rise to £20m including add-ons (Goal.com).
Antonio Conte admitted this week that it was the Tottenham hierarchy who suggested signing the right-back and that he gave the green light to the deal (Football.London).
It was his performances on loan at Nottingham Forest last season that thrust the England Under-21 international to the limelight, and The Athletic have now revealed that Spurs were not the only top Premier League club after the player.
The report explains that Chelsea wanted to sign Spence as a possible understudy to Reece James but Tottenham was always the youngster’s favoured destination.
It is further suggested that Spurs could have signed the right-back back in January but Middlesbrough would have had to exercise their option to bring him back from his season-long loan at the City Ground for a deal to have been possible during the winter.
Spurs Web Opinion
I am not surprised that Chelsea wanted Spence, given that Thomas Tuchel also plays with wing-backs. The 21-year-old arguably has the highest ceiling out of the six signings that Tottenham have made this summer and I am excited to see if he can hit the ground running this season.
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