Tottenham Hotspur have a squad selection problem already in the opening weeks of the season as Djed Spence has been left out of the club’s official Europa League squad.
The Lilywhites supporters were looking to watch the ex-Middlesbrough man in the new campaign after he managed to impress in the pre-season and earned his stay at N17 amidst a bunch of links away from White Hart Lane. And with the history of Premier League clubs using a second-fold team in the opening stages of the Europa League, it seemed highly likely that Ange would build Spence’s minutes in the competition.
Spence left out of Tottenham’s Europa League squad
With the club having only two club-trained players as opposed to the stipulated four, Ange Postecoglou was forced to name a 23-man squad rather than the allotted twenty-five. And while leaving former Madrid defender Sergio Reguilon was a straight-forward decision, the absence of Spence comes as a surprise.
Spence has already come on as a substitute twice in the new season, and he would have hoped to build the manager’s trust in Europe’s second-tier campaign. However, that will not be the case now, and Ange Postecoglou admitted that it was a difficult decision to leave out the £25,000-per-week ace.
-> Tottenham Hotspur confirmed signings, transfers in, out, loan exits, releases for 2024/25
The Australian went on to admit that Spence will find minutes in the domestic competitions.
When Ange was quizzed about how Spence reacted to the news of being left out of the UEL squad, he said:
When Ange was quizzed about how Spence reacted to the news of being left out of the UEL squad, he said: (via. The Standard)
“He’s disappointed. It was always going to be a difficult decision with the make-up of our squad currently. With the lack of club-trained players, we were always going to have to leave somebody out.”
-> Tottenham’s 5 best PL opening day wins
“Djed was
the unfortunate one. But, at the same time, Djed has already played in the Premier League, and if you asked him at the start of the season where he sees himself, I think the fact he’s part of our squad and will play a huge part in our year as he has already, I don’t think he should take too much disappointment.“
Ange explains his decision
Ange explains that the decision was made keeping in mind the squad balance, explaining that there is enough cover at the back.
“Obviously, everyone wants to play, but in the end, it was about team balance for us. We just feel that with the squad we’ve got, we’ve got some cover on the right side, some players that can cover on the left side.”
“I always tend to go for more attacking players in those scenarios. So Djed misses out, but as I say, he’s already played a couple of games in the Premier League, and there will be plenty of football for him if he keeps going like he is.”
While this comes as a setback, there have been multiple of such scenarios in which the 24-year-old has come out on top, and he would be looking to repeat such feat yet again.
Do you think Ange was wrong in not naming Spence in the Europa League squad? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
