Tottenham Hotspur have been linked with a move for the Middlesbrough full-back Djed Spence for weeks now and the Londoners are finally close to completing the transfer for a fee of around £15 million.
According to a report from the Telegraph, the Premier League side are now close to securing an agreement in principle with the Championship outfit for the England under-21 international.
The two clubs have been locked in talks for weeks and the 21-year-old will now undergo his medical with the London club before flying out with the squad for the pre-season tour of South Korea.
Spence was on loan at Nottingham Forest last season and he helped the club return to the Premier League for the first time since 1999.
Tottenham need to add more depth and quality to their full-back positions and the youngster should prove to be a quality long-term acquisition.
Although the full-back needs to improve on the defensive side of his game, he is very effective in attack and his dribbling ability will add a new dimension to the side going forward.
Spence will have seen multiple full-backs developing into top-quality players under the management of Antonio Conte and he will be hoping to follow in their footsteps and fulfil his tremendous potential at the London club.
The reported £15m fee seems quite reasonable for a player of his potential in today’s market and Spence could end up proving to be a bargain in the long run.
The 21-year-old can operate as a right-back as well as a right-sided wing-back. His quality going forward will be quite useful for Conte when the Italian employs a three-defender formation with wing-backs.
It will be interesting to see whether the youngster can adapt to the Italian’s style of play quickly and hold down a regular starting berth next season.
