"But I wasn't going to give him the opportunity to play, that was the bit I was going to hold back for as long as possible to really test out how much he really wanted it and what he was prepared to do to get that opportunity.
Spence has had a consistent champion at Spurs in the form of Postecoglou's assistant, Matt Wells, but he was largely overlooked by the manager in the first half of this season, making just five appearances from the bench before an injury to Destiny Udogie opened the door.
Tottenham head coach Ange Postecoglou believes England hopeful Djed Spence is playing as well as any full-back in the Premier League but has urged the "laid-back" defender not to settle for his current level.
Spence has set his sights on a call-up to Thomas Tuchel's first England squad, which the German will name next month, and Postecoglou is confident that he would take international football in his stride.
"Of course there has [been a method with Spence] and I’m proud of that, not for me but for us as a club and for the coaching group that we thought there was something there," Postecoglou said.
