Ange Postecoglou gives Tottenham their first ever start to a forgotten £20million signing as Spurs target a much-needed win at bottom club Southampton

Ange Postecoglou named Djed Spence in Tottenham’s starting XI for the first time in the game against Southampton on Sunday evening.

The full-back moved to Spurs from Middlesbrough for £20m in 2022 but has only made eight appearances since then and has now earned his first cap after 884 days.

During his time at the club he had three loan spells, namely with Rennes, Leeds United and Genoa.

The North London side have not won in five games. However, Postecoglou was forced into defence, given the injury crisis; Cristian Romero, Micky van de Ven and Ben Davies are all out.

Tottenham sit a dismal 13th in the table, eight points behind Nottingham Forest, who occupy the final Champions League qualifying spot. With 20 points, Spurs are just as close to Ipswich in the relegation zone (12 points) as they are to Forest.

Alongside Spence, another young talent is 18-year-old Swedish star Lucas Bergvall, who made his first start against Southampton, starting in defensive midfield.

Djed Spence has been called into Tottenham’s starting XI for the first time since joining in 2022

Ange Postecoglou made several changes to his injury-plagued team, particularly in defense

Timo Werner was dropped after Postecoglou described his “unacceptable” first-half performance against Rangers in the Europa League on Thursday

On 19 August 2024, Spence made his first appearance for Tottenham since January 2023. He replaced Pedro Porro in the first Premier League game of the season – a 1–1 draw against Leicester.

Postecoglou’s side have kept just one clean sheet in their last nine league games and have the perfect opportunity to regain confidence against relegation battlers Southampton.

The Saints sit bottom of the table with five points and have won just one of their first 15 games.