Djed Spence Tottenham transfer update issued by Genoa director ahead of key summer decision

Genoa sporting director Marco Ottolini has indicated that the Italian club are in contact with Tottenham over Djed Spence and will evaluate a permanent transfer in the coming weeks. Starting the 2023/24 season on loan in the Championship with Leeds United before his loan move was brought to an early end, the 23-year-old headed to Serie A in January with the player having no part to play in Ange Postecoglou's Spurs plans.

Since joining Genoa, the right wing-back has made nine appearances in all competitions for Alberto Gilardino's side, starting five of those games and coming off the bench in the other four. Now having seven games in their season remaining as they eye up a top-half finish, Spence, who Ottolini believes can do more and the player is aware of it, will be intent on finishing the season strongly ahead of a crucial summer in his career.

His current club will be keeping a very close eye on him in their next seven league games, with a positive end to the campaign potentially helping him earn a permanent move to the Stadio Luigi Ferraris. The coming weeks will give Ottolini the opportunity to discover Genoa's stance on a permanent deal and also the player's thoughts on signing a long-term deal in Liguria.

“I speak with Djed every week. We have created a good environment for him. We are trying to make him feel warm and welcome here, and this will then translate into his performances on the pitch. We want to give him the right conditions to perform," said Ottolini in an exclusive interview with CaughtOffside.

“We still have seven games to go and we want to see what he can do. Personally, I like Djed and how he is doing, and how he is training. Of course, he can do more, and he knows this, but we are in contact with Spurs and will evaluate a deal over the next few months giving us time to understand both our positions and Djed’s perspective on potentially staying here."

Ottolini has been aware of Spence's playing career since first noticing him playing in an Under-23s game for Fulham back in 2017. The sporting director was then presented with the opportunity to sign the right-sided player in January after Genoa and Tottenham were in discussions over a permanent move for centre-back Radu Dragusin.

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“I remember I was at Craven Cottage in 2017 with Fulham’s then Academy director Huw Jennings," explained Ottolini. "There was an Under-23s game and I noticed Djed for the first time. He went on to Middlesbrough and a loan at Nottingham Forest before being sold to Tottenham.

“So I knew all about his characteristics from back then and they were fresh in my mind when we spoke to Tottenham. Djed had not had good loans [at Rennes and Leeds] but I still knew his quality. And we were looking to strengthen at right-back in January.

“Through our discussions with Tottenham over Radu [Dragusin], the possibility of taking Djed on loan emerged. We knew he had struggled a bit at Leeds. I don’t want to say the move was a risk for us, but let’s just say it was clear his profile was not at its best and maybe he was suffering from a mentality problem. We thought maybe Genoa could provide a different environment to get the best out of him so we decided to complete the loan.”

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