Chadder View: Tottenham must take one final look at Sergio Reguilon and Djed Spence before permanent decision
Matthew Chadder is a lifelong Tottenham fan who grew up just down the road from his beloved club in North London. He’s now putting his passion for Spurs into words with a daily fan view for Tottenham News…
Tottenham are in desperate need of defensive reinforcements, wherever they can get them right now, and both a left-back and a right-back have found their way back to the club this past week.
Sure, Sergio Reguilon and Djed Spence are not top of Ange Postecoglou’s list of preferred players, but in all fairness, the Australian hasn’t given either of those players much of an opportunity to prove themselves.
Both were shipped off in the summer and although Postecoglou had a couple of months with the pair before they departed for their separate season-long loans, it was hardly enough time to formulate a proper judgement.
At the end of the day, we’re not talking about older players who are past their prime, these are relatively young defenders who have time to learn and develop, especially under the right coach.
Postecoglou has proven so far that he can be the right coach, so why not for Reguilon and Spence?
Many Spurs fans, including myself, probably wouldn’t have been too bothered to have seen the back of Yves Bissouma in the summer, and – apart from a bit of a rough patch recently – he now looks like a standout performer for the club, and he is showing the potential he promised when he arrived from Brighton, aside from a few lapses in concentration here and there.
The same goes for Giovani Lo Celso. He was a player who had been written off even more than Bissouma, but when he has played for Postecoglou, he has shown quality – most notably with his assist for Son Heung-min in the win over Bournemouth on New Year’s Eve.
Sometimes players just need a change in management and style, and there has certainly been a dramatic one at Hotspur Way this season, and I believe Spence and Reguilon should both get one final chance to prove themselves within that system.
In the case of Spence, you could argue he hasn’t been given a fair chance at all to begin with. Since arriving from Middlesbrough he has played just four times in the Premier League, in a season and a half.
He has spent most of his Tottenham career on loan, and I find it odd that he hasn’t been given a proper go. I am sure there is plenty of behind-the-scenes information I don’t have available at my fingertips, but sometimes all a player needs is a chance to play, and in fairness, if Spence is disgruntled and moody behind the scenes then I can’t blame him considering the lack of time he has been given on the pitch under two managers.
As for Reguilon, he was brilliant when he first joined the club, and while his form did dip, he is still only 27 years old and has plenty of good years ahead of him.
Spence could certainly make the stronger case of the two, still being just 23 years old, but in my opinion, both players have more than enough reason to plead to Postecoglou.
The Australian needs depth at the back, and both players are certainly at least good enough for a squad role, they deserve to be given the chance to prove that, at least until the summer.
In other Tottenham news, ex-Spurs scout Bryan King has warned Postecoglou to avoid a past mistake when his side host Burnley in the FA Cup.