The nine words Ange Postecoglou privately told Djed Spence before giving him regular chances at Tottenham

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Djed Spence has been Tottenham Hotspur’s best player in recent months.

Spurs fans haven’t had a lot to cheer about this season. They are out of both domestic cups and their performances in the Premier League have been disastrous.

Tottenham are currently 12th in the league table after 25 games, which is simply not good enough despite all the injury issues they have had.

However, a shining light in what has otherwise mostly been a dark few months has been the performances of Spence, who has been sensational.

What Ange Postecoglou told Djed Spence before his brilliant run of form at Tottenham

Spence was not expected to stay at Tottenham last summer.

The Englishman spent the second half of last season on loan at Genoa, and the expectation was that he would join them on a permanent deal.

That move collapsed, but Ange Postecoglou didn’t really show much willingness to make Spence an integral part of his squad at that stage.

After playing just 64 minutes of football in the first 15 Premier League games of the season, Postecoglou gave Spence an opportunity, and the full-back hasn’t looked back since.

The Australian has revealed that he intentionally made life difficult for Spence. He also shared the nine-words he told the defender before giving him regular chances.

Postecoglou said, as per Football London: “I made it difficult for him, to be fair. I didn’t make it easy for him, it’s not like I said to him ‘Djed, you’re here, we love you, stay’.

“I purposefully made it difficult for him because I thought that was going to be the test. To see, earlier in the year when he wasn’t playing or part of squads, how he was training, he was reacting to things, and he never got disengaged. He was always engaged and that made an impression on everyone – me, the coaches, his teammates – and from then on, it’s just been all about him.

“All I did was say: ‘You’ve earned a shot at it, here it is!’

“And he’s been brilliant. You know there’s a player there and sometimes you just need certain things to click into gear.”

Postecoglou needs to drop one player at Tottenham now

Spence is naturally a right-back, but most of his appearances for Tottenham in recent weeks have come on the opposite side.

That’s because Destiny Udogie has been out injured, and Spence has been fantastic in his place.

The Italian is back fit now and was an unused substitute in the win against Manchester United in the Premier League last weekend.

Udogie gives Spurs a better balance on the left side of the pitch, so we think he should return to the starting lineup whenever he is ready.

But, Spence is undroppable right now.

So, we think Postecoglou should drop Pedro Porro and play Spence at right-back, which would then allow Udogie to start in his regular position.