Spence defies his doubters again with England call-up

Tottenham full-back tells how Conte shook his confidence as he hopes to be first practising Muslim in men's national team

- LAWRENCE OSTLERE SPORTS WRITER

Djed Spence doesn't write down the names of his critics in a little black book, but he certainly remembers them. “I have a mental note of people who doubted me," he says, "and it does feel good to prove them wrong."

Like his former manager at Middlesbrough, Neil Warnock, who publicly criticised his commitment and said he'd end up playing in non-league. Spence later tweeted Warnock with that famous picture of himself smoking a cigar as he celebrated promotion to the Premier League with Nottingham Forest.

Or Antonio Conte, who declared Spence was not a signing he personally sanctioned when Tottenham recruited the fullback in a £12.5m deal, and called him an "investment by the club". The words stung.

"I did really well, got promoted with Nottingham Forest, I'm buzzing, I'm going to sign for Tottenham," Spence recalls. "So to hear comments like that wasn't nice, it shatters your confidence. But I'm a fighter. Fast forward, I'm here now, so I'm happy."

The defender is speaking to a huddle of journalists in a side room at St George's Park following his first senior call-up to the England squad. He has been here before with England Under-21s, and says he feels at home after being officially welcomed by Thomas Tuchel in a team meeting on Tuesday. And yet it marks a new achievement unlocked in a career that continues to defy the disbelievers.

Daniel Farke was another, pointing to "professionalism" and "discipline" as reasons Leeds decided not to pursue a permanent transfer after a loan spell from Spurs. At which point a pattern was developing and it was fair to ask: does Spence have an attitude problem?