Ange Postecoglou has encountered plenty of nasty surprises during his second season in charge of Tottenham Hotspur, but Djed Spence’s rise has been a rare positive one. The 24-year-old has been one of Spurs’ best players since breaking into the team in mid-December,

Tottenham defender Djed Spence said he is confident in his ability to stop Mohamed Salah from scoring in Thursday's Carabao Cup semifinal.

Tottenham ended their run of four successive Premier League defeats with a hard-fought 2-0 victory at Brentford on Sunday. In a week where they travel to Anfield and Villa Park in the Carabao and FA Cup, the win was timely given it was their first in the top flight since before Christmas.

Spence helped to keep Salah quiet as Spurs won the first leg 1-0 in north London last month and the 24-year-old, who has been deputising at left-back for Ange Postecoglou's depleted side, is likely to be in direct competition with the Egyptian again at Anfield.

Djed Spence is making up for lost time with a string of impressive performances for Tottenham during Ange Postecoglou's never-ending injury crisis - and now the defender is eyeing an England call

Spence and Salah came up against each other in the first leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final in January at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. The Spurs defender did a decent job in that game as well, and the stats prove it.