The worst fears of many Tottenham fans have been realised following Djed Spence’s debut for loan club Rennes on Saturday.
Spence joined the Ligue 1 outfit on deadline day in somewhat of a surprise move, having been linked with a switch to Premier League rivals Brentford and Southampton instead.
It’s thought that Spurs opted to send the 22-year-old to France so that he would be out of sight and out of mind if, as was always the possibility, he performed like the player the club thought they had signed for £20million last summer.
Spence was almost completely frozen out by Antonio Conte and just made the odd substitute appearance. Indeed, he only featured for a total of 43 minutes before Tottenham before sealing his loan exit.
The former Middlesbrough man made his Rennes debut in a 3-1 loss to Lille on Saturday. And, despite the loss, Spence was given plenty of praise for his performance after being thrown in to start.
As reported in the Daily Mail, the right-back made an instant impact after less than five minutes. Attacking down the right flank, Spence flew past a defender before his byline cut-back was unable to be turned in by any of his teammates.
Spence’s attacking performance continued to be a highlight for the home side, with the defender firing narrowly wide after receiving the ball on the edge of the box.
The Tottenham star also nearly forced an own goal with another marauding run and while Rennes faded badly in the second half, Spence continued to be one of their shining lights.
Fans rave over Spence debut for Rennes
And after the match, supporters were quick to praise Spence for his display. Indeed, one fan even labelled him the new Kyle Walker.
Spurs have struggled badly to replace the England man since his departure in 2017, but one fan made the comparison, saying: “Pure acceleration to beat his man, and equally at ease coming infield. No surprise he had plenty of interest in the January window.”
Another added ‘it blows my mind he’s on loan’ while one suggested ‘how and why did we not give Djed Spence chances?’.
Tottenham also tore up Matt Doherty’s contract to allow him to join Atletico Madrid in a surprise move.
However, they did finally complete the signing of Pedro Porro from Sporting Lisbon on deadline day.
The Spaniard arrived on loan with an obligation to buy for around £39million after it looked like the deal would collapse.
Porro is expected to be a significant upgrade in the right wing-back position, although Spence could push him next season if he continues to excel in France and then in pre-season.
However, much will depend on whether Conte is still at the helm, as the Italian clearly does not rate the former Nottingham Forest loanee.
