Djed Spence, an ex-Reds loanee, recalls on his City Ground stay and Spurs transfer. He describes it as “one of the best moments” of his career.
The right-back played a significant role in the Reds‘ return to the Premier League nearly two years ago. He thrived in the Garibaldi while on loan from Middlesbrough, appearing 46 times and scoring three goals for the team.
Many Forest fans wished he had signed on a permanent basis that summer, but he instead moved to Tottenham Hotspur for a large fee. However, Spence’s situation has not improved since then.
He has yet to break through at Spurs and is currently on his third loan spell since moving to the capital, joining Genoa in January. However, the 23-year-old still has fond recollections of his time at the City Ground.
“It was me at my best, enjoying football and loving the game,” he told The Athletic. “It was one of the best moments of my career, it was a really good time.”
It also helped that Spence had a management in Steve Cooper, who was the head coach at the time, who could get the most out of him. However, the defender was not surprised when Cooper was fired in December, owing to Forest’s poor results.
“No. “These things happen in football,” Spence remarked, when asked if Cooper‘s dismissal surprised him. “No one is exempt from being dismissed; this is football. He performed an excellent job in getting us to the Premier League, and he achieved some remarkable things for the club.”
He continued, “Steve Cooper is a fantastic person who understands people. He’s a fantastic coach; he knew me as a player and a person, which was extremely essential.
“He worked for England youth, so he was familiar with younger players and people from various backgrounds, and he knew how to deal with specific players, which helped a lot. He just let me be myself.
“With Cooper, he’ll give you confidence, ask you questions, and speak to you like a regular human; that’s important in football. We don’t only go to work and push a button; we also function and play. We are human, and we enjoy interacting and speaking.
Spence was in high demand when his loan spell with Forest ended. Tottenham won the race to sign him, and the former England Under-21 international wants to one day get the opportunity to showcase his abilities there.
“I didn’t have a great time,” he stated about his time with the Spurs thus far. “I went there but didn’t play, so it was obviously difficult for me. When you join as a player for a large club, you expect to be filled with confidence and welcomed with wide arms, like I was, but something didn’t feel right when I arrived. Things did not go exactly as I had intended.
“When you don’t get a chance, you can’t accomplish much as a player. You become disoriented, stop playing, and find it difficult to regain your rhythm. It’s never easy to adjust to a new setting when things don’t go as planned, but it’s all part of the game. It is a learning experience.
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