Djed Spence, 23, was reportedly transfer listed by Tottenham after Leeds United abruptly ended his loan at Elland Road. Spence was supposed to play for the Championship team until the end of the campaign, but as the Whites decided to sever relations, he left and went back to North London.
After just seven appearances for the team in all competitions this season, Spence will be returning to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, effective immediately, Spurs were notified on Thursday by Leeds. The revelation was reported to have startled Tottenham officials, but it appeared like the writing was on the wall as he dropped to the right back position behind 17-year-old Archie Grey.
Although Spence’s loan was terminated, Leeds manager Daniel Farke made a suggestion that the player’s attitude might have been a factor.
“I don’t want to talk too much about Djed right now, because he’s meanwhile also back at Tottenham, I totally respect that he’s their player,” stated Farke. “Listen, we came here in the summer to instill new ideals and to establish a new culture within the team. Whether a player is on a loan or a permanent basis, we have expectations, and these expectations are significant in a number of areas.
Naturally, the player’s potential and quality are important, but so are his professionalism, discipline, workload both on and off the pitch, and soft skills. It also helps to paint a picture of him if he is a positive, dedicated member of the team and actively involved in these subjects.
We came to the conclusion that this is the guy we want to represent Leeds United and have in our group. We have extremely high expectations and don’t differentiate between permanent and loan players, so we are picky about this kind of thing.
We decided that Djed’s loan would be terminated, and he would return to Tottenham. We are appreciative of his presence here. We truly wish him the best because he’s a cool kid with a genuinely wonderful heart and a player with a lot of potential. However, there are instances when you must make a choice and carry it out.”
The Daily Mail claims that Spurs are now hoping to sign Spence to a long-term contract in January. It’s reported that the club has similar misgivings about Spence’s demeanour, especially when it comes to his punctuality.
For £20 million, Tottenham acquired Spence from Nottingham Forest in July 2022. Most of his time has been spent on loan from Spurs, first to Leeds in the current campaign and then to Rennes in the previous one. During the 2022–2023 season, Spence made a few appearances for his parent club, but he only contributed 41 minutes in six games.
