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Thomas Tuchel announced his squad for England’s World Cup qualifiers against Andorra and Serbia at the exact same time Tottenham Hotspur started their final training session before they faced Bournemouth. Djed Spence already knew he had received a senior call-up for the first time after receiving a text message in the morning, but his team-mates and the coaching staff were clueless. Advertisement “We started training at 12pm and someone came out straight after (to tell us), ” Spurs’ head coach Thomas Frank said last week. “I congratulated him in front of the players and there was applause and hugs and everything. I spoke to him after and said, ‘Well deserved and I hope you enjoy it. Let’s keep up the good level and keep the focus for the game tomorrow and then go in and enjoy being part of the England squad’. ” The 25-year-old’s call-up is just the latest chapter in a remarkable story. If he makes his debut, Spence will become the first openly Muslim player to represent England. So proud of our Djed ? pic. twitter. com/N3Ez Aud Y4d — Tottenham Hotspur (@Spurs Official) September 2, 2025 Twelve months ago, Tottenham’s then head coach Ange Postecoglou omitted the versatile defender from his squad for the league phase of the Europa League. Postecoglou had praised Spence’s performances and attitude in pre-season but that decision suggested he was still not trusted or valued. After mixed loan spells with Rennes, Leeds United and Genoa, maybe he needed to find a new permanent home. Less than two weeks later, Spence’s 88th-minute equaliser in a dramatic 2-1 victory over Coventry City in the third round of the Carabao Cup looked like it would properly ignite his Spurs career. A groin injury slowed down Spence’s momentum and he had to wait until December to make his first start — 881 days after he joined from Middlesbrough in a deal worth up to £20million. Spence has not looked back since he registered an assist and helped Spurs to keep a clean sheet in that thumping victory over Southampton on December 15. There was a brief period towards the end of last season when Destiny Udogie was preferred for high-profile matches, but Spence’s performances under Frank have been encouraging. Advertisement “Big credit to Djed, he truly deserves it, ” Frank said. “It has been a tough, not tough, but what a journey to have it at 25 years old. Being called up I don’t think many saw that coming. He had a good end to last season. He had a top pre-season. He played very well in the three games against PSG, Burnley and Man City. Really giving a lot to the team. I’m so happy for him. “Djed is a fantastic example for a lot of players. Not only here at Tottenham but also other places, that anything is possible if you are resilient. If you can get through the tough spells that are in football and life. Be very disciplined, keep going, train very well, keep believing in your abilities, keep going even if it’s a very rainy day. I think that is a big credit to him and a great example. Those stories, I think, we should appreciate and be happy for. ” For a long time, it felt like Spence would never be able to shake off the spectre of Antonio Conte. The Italian was in charge of Spurs when Spence joined them in July 2022, a couple of months after his electric performances at right wing-back helped Nottingham Forest earn promotion to the top flight via the Championship play-offs. Instead of welcoming the then 21-year-old with open arms, Conte called him a “club signing. ” Spence has since admitted in multiple interviews that his confidence was “shattered” and “I felt like whatever I did, that man wasn’t happy about anything. ” Spence’s England call-up, and contributions for Spurs as they won the Europa League in May after he was included in their squad for the knockout stages, means that he can finally bury Conte’s harsh words. He has shown his old manager, who won the Serie A title with Napoli last season, that it was wrong to write him off. Spence might never truly escape those comments but he has transformed the context around them. People will no longer question if Conte was firm but fair. They will wonder how he overlooked such an exciting talent. Advertisement One of Spence’s best performances last season came in a 2-0 victory over Brentford in February. He locked down Brentford’s top goalscorer Bryan Mbeumo, who joined Manchester United in July in a deal worth up to £72m, and won the player of the match award in front of his future boss Frank. Between December and February, Spence was Tottenham’s most reliable performer. Spence dropped off slightly towards the end of the campaign as he switched between left-back and right-back every week. Postecoglou’s only concern was winning the Europa League, so he rested key players for top-flight matches. Udogie was restored to first-choice left-back from the quarter-final tie against Eintracht Frankfurt onwards. Spence started 11 of Tottenham’s final 12 league games and their only victory came against Southampton. He was playing with different centre-backs and a constantly rotating cast in midfield. Frank, who replaced Postecoglou in June, spent a lot of time in pre-season working on the defence with his backroom staff. Spence has benefited from the Dane’s attention to detail. It helps that Frank was already aware of Spence’s talent — Brentford’s recruitment department had scouted him during his spells with Forest and Middlesbrough in the second tier. Spence signed a contract extension last October when he was still on the fringes of the squad. The defender’s new long-term deal, which he signed last month, better reflects his status as a crucial member of the first team. “With his performances, suddenly he’s just in the picture because he is athletic, I’m guessing, I don’t know, I haven’t spoken to Tuchel about this, quick, one-on-one, defensively, exceptionally good, ” Frank said. “Look at his performances against PSG, Burnley and (Man) City. Top wingers he is taking out. When he’s bombarding forward, it’s very difficult to catch him. He’s a great type, can play left and right. A very good player. ” Spence’s post on social media after Spurs’ victory over Man City at the Etihad perfectly sums him up. He uploaded a photo of himself tackling Rico Lewis with the caption “bring me your favourite winger. ” He limited Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Achraf Hakimi and his former Rennes team-mate Desire Doue in the UEFA Super Cup. In last weekend’s defeat to Bournemouth, he moved to right-back in the second half and dealt with Antoine Semenyo far better than Pedro Porro. Tuchel has taken notice. “He had a very good end to the season with Tottenham and a very impressive start to the season, ” Tuchel said. “He was impressively good against PSG in the Super Cup. He came up against a lot of quality on his side, against a lot of speed and handled it impressively well and kept on going with Tottenham in the Premier League starts. He can play both sides, he plays very intense, he’s in shape and he deserved to be called up. ” Advertisement There have been question marks in the past over the defender’s attitude. During his loan spell with Leeds, Spence frustrated their head coach Daniel Farke with his timekeeping. Sources close to Spence, who asked to remain anonymous to protect relationships, described him as an introvert to The Athletic in February. He is loud and demanding on the pitch but can be quiet in the dressing room. He is aloof and sometimes this has been misinterpreted as him not caring. What is clear to see, is that Spence benefits from working with warm and friendly head coaches like Frank and Steve Cooper, who managed him at Forest. Postecoglou said he “purposefully made it difficult” for Spence to get game time at the beginning of last season to see how he reacted. “He was always engaged and that made an impression on everyone, ” Postecoglou added at the time. Spence made six appearances for England Under-21s in 2022. Three years later, he has followed Morgan Gibbs-White, Anthony Gordon and Noni Madueke into the senior set-up. Tuchel does not have an obvious first-choice left-back ahead of next summer’s World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico. Luke Shaw has constantly struggled for fitness while Myles Lewis-Skelly and Lewis Hall have not started yet this season for Arsenal and Newcastle United respectively. Spence’s ability to cover both wings gives him an advantage over his peers but would it really surprise anybody if he went on to establish himself as Tuchel’s preferred option for England’s first group game at the World Cup? (Top photo: Eddie Keogh/The FA via Getty Images) Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms Play today's puzzle Jay Harris reports on Tottenham Hotspur for The Athletic. He worked for Sky Sports News for four years before he joined The Athletic in 2021 and spent three seasons covering Brentford. He covered the 2022 World Cup from Qatar and the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations in Ivory Coast. Follow Jay on Twitter @jaydmharris