Tottenham ace Djed Spence set for bigger World Cup part than anyone imagined - verdict

Tottenham defender Djed Spence looks set for a bigger role than expected at the World Cup for England after his cameo against Croatia.

Spence was a surprise inclusion in Thomas Tuchel's squad for the tournament in the eyes of many.

The 25-year-old had made just six senior appearances for England prior to the tournament in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

Tuchel selected Spence mainly for his pace, however, and he has already showed he is not afraid to use him from the substitutes' bench.

Spence was brought on for the final 10 minutes as England earned a 4-2 win over Croatia in Wednesday's Group L opener.

And on the basis of his lively cameo, it surely will not be the last we see of Spence at this summer's showpiece event.

Djed Spence's England performance in numbers

Spence may only have been given 10 minutes at the AT&T stadium, but boy did he catch the eye.

The full-back had a glorious chance to score moments after coming on, but he was denied by Dominik Livakovic when he should have been scoring.

Still, that ability to get in behind would have caught the eye of Tuchel, who will certainly not be put off using Spence again.

Remarkably, thanks to that aforementioned chance, Spence generated an expected goals (xG) value of 0.54 in a little over 10 minutes on the pitch.

For comparison, only Ezri Konsa (0.63) and two-goal Harry Kane (1.03) registered a higher individual xG.

Defensively, Spence also won one tackle - only Elliott Anderson (two) and Jude Bellingham (three) could better that.

Spence's 83 per cent pass completion rate (five out of six) was also among the highest among England players, albeit over a far smaller time period.

Add into the mix the one out of one duels won, as per Sofascore, and it is fair to say Spence certainly did not disappoint.

On that basis, it may well be that he could play a bigger part for England than expected, particularly if a knockout spot is secured after two games.

What did English media make of Spence's England performance?

Spence was given a seven out of 10 by The Metro, who wrote: "Showed his searing pace after replacing Bellingham in the second half, with Livakovic getting down well to stop the Tottenham flyer’s poked effort from close range."

The Independent, perhaps echoing the views of many, wrote: "Could he played a bigger part in this World Cup than anyone expected? Brought energy from right-back late on."

As for Sky Sports, they went with: "Could and should have scored his first England goal after entering the fray with 10 minutes to go, but faced with just the onrushing Livakovic to beat, the Spurs defender shot straight at the Croatia goalkeeper."

Spence will be disappointed he did not score a magical debut goal at the World Cup, but he could be pleased with his impact.

Let's hope Tuchel continues to show the type of faith in the defender that many England fans previously lacked.