Former Chelsea midfielder Andy Townsend has urged his old club to sign England full-back Djed Spence, who has been offered to both Liverpool and Manchester United. Spence, 25, impressed at the World Cup with England, helping Thomas Tuchel's side finish third, but faces a fight for regular minutes at Tottenham this season.
Spence's Tottenham struggles
Spence joined Spurs from Middlesbrough for £20million four years ago but struggled initially to secure a first-team role. He has spent just two full seasons at the club, with Destiny Udogie and Pedro Porro preferred by manager Roberto De Zerbi on both flanks.
Reports earlier in the week suggested that both Liverpool and Manchester United had been offered the chance to sign the versatile full-back, who is keen to leave Spurs this summer.
Townsend's verdict
Townsend told talkSPORT: 'I don't know what he would cost because of how well he did at the World Cup. Has that inflated his price tag unreasonably? I genuinely haven't got a clue.'
'If Cucurella is going to Real Madrid for over £60million, I would have thought Djed Spence at £40million, something around that figure, would be a decent acquisition. It wouldn't do them any harm to have someone who is still looking to improve as a player, who is all ears and wants to get better. He is now showing what he is capable of, so that would be a good piece of business.'
Chelsea may have to act quickly, with reports suggesting Inter Milan have entered talks with Spurs over a deal for the defender. Inter are keen to strengthen at right-back after Denzel Dumfries left for Real Madrid. A fee in the region of €30million (£25.6m) could be enough for Spurs to sell Spence, who is under contract until 2028.
Sánchez criticism
Townsend also urged Chelsea to find a replacement for goalkeeper Robert Sánchez, who has never fully convinced since his £25m move from Brighton in 2023.
'Robert Sanchez is one of those goalkeepers that Monday to Friday, he must be unbelievable,' Townsend added. 'He must be plucking them out of the top corner and making saves from all angles – he must be brilliant. Everyone at the club thinks there is a proper goalkeeper there, whereas most of us are waiting for a lapse in concentration. You are just waiting for him to scupper all of the good work that clearly he can do.'
'I would have thought that if Chelsea want to win the league, and I am sure they will want to again at some point, they are going to have to upgrade. But they obviously haven't seen anything they really fancy, so they are going to continue to go with Sanchez.'
Spence would follow international colleague John Stones, who left Manchester City for Inter on a free transfer last month. De Zerbi said he would not stand in the way of any player wanting to leave, telling Spence and Lucas Bergvall: 'I would like you to stay if you want to stay. If you don't want to stay, if you want to leave, then you have to leave.'
