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Football London
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Alasdair Gold

Djed Spence praise, Udogie criticism, new Parrott injury as Napoli set to make Ndombele decision

There were some new faces getting minutes among Tottenham's 11-strong loan army as they took to pitches across England and Europe this weekend.

With Bryan Gil, Djed Spence and Harvey White heading out in the last few days of the transfer window, Spurs now have more than £200m worth of signings out on loan. That figure would have been higher had Matt Doherty also gone on loan as planned to Atletico Madrid, only for the club to realise that with eight players already out on international loans FIFA rules prevented a ninth and instead the Irishman's contract was mutually terminated.

So how did Tottenham's loan players get on over the past week? football.london takes a in-depth look.

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Djed Spence and Joe Rodon (Rennes)

It was all going so well for Rennes and their two Spurs players for much of their match against Lille on Saturday. Djed Spence made his Ligue 1 debut and got 84 minutes under his belt - more than double his game time across the whole first half of the season at Tottenham.

The 22-year-old was bright going forward, dynamic in his play and had a shot on goal while almost forcing an own goal with one run and cross. He looked understandably rustier at the back with his defending, particularly in the second half, but to his credit he had already come off the pitch when Rennes conceded two late goals to lose the game, the first arriving just a minute after his departure.

Rennes coach Bruno Genesio was impressed though with the young full-back, saying after the game: "His first half was very good, but he lacked rhythm in the second. It’s normal. Until now, he hasn't play a lot with his former club, but he made a good impression for the future."

Joe Rodon got a fifth consecutive 90 minutes under his belt but the 25-year-old was unable to prevent Lille from leaving Rennes with all three points.

Bryan Gil (Sevilla)

Bryan Gil also faced defeat on his loan debut with his old side Sevilla as they lost 3-0 at Barcelona in La Liga on Sunday.

Gil, who like Spence moved on loan without an option to buy, was brought on at the break with struggling Sevilla 1-0 down in the first half of the game at the Camp Nou. He came on as part of a double change with former Spurs man Erik Lamela, who moved to Sevilla as part of the deal for Gil back in the summer of 2021.

With Sevilla just two points above the drop zone in La Liga, 21-year-old Gil will need to play a leading role in dragging his old team back up the table. Saturday will bring his second home debut for the club as they host mid-table Mallorca.

Destiny Udogie (Udinese)

Destiny Udogie also tasted defeat on Sunday as Udinese lost 1-0 at Torino in Serie A but he received some criticism from the Italian media.

The Italy U21 international remains a constant starter for Udinese and he played the full 90 minutes but despite an impressive season so far, Gazzetta dello Sport handed him only a five in their player ratings for this particular performance.

As translated by Sport Witness, the Italian media outlet said his performance was a 'draft copy' of what he can normally produce and that this was the kind of performance Spurs will hope he gets out of his system before heading to England. He 'pushed very little' in terms of going forward and 'made many mistakes' throughout the game, and that he was 'absent in the action of the goal'.

Missing the chance to close Ola Aina down, Udogie stood back and could only watch him put in the cross that found Yann Karamoh at the back post.

Spurs' managing director of football Fabio Paratici said last week that the club have been following Udogie closely.

"We watch every game so scouts, they’re responsible for loans, so we follow him, he is doing very well, he is playing every game so I think this is the right way for him to improve and to be ready for next season. He is a wing-back, he has a really, really, really good left foot, offensive phases are really good, he creates a lot of opportunities to score, make assists so he’s a complete player."

Harry Winks (Sampdoria)

After finally making his Sampdoria debut last month, Harry Winks looks to be back on track after his ankle surgery with three consecutive starts for the club.

Winks, who turned 27 last Thursday, showed his fitness levels with 90 minute displays in all three games. The Genoa-based club are struggling both on the pitch and off of it with financial problems. After two defeats in his first two games,

Winks helped Sampdoria to a point at Monza on Monday night in a 2-2 draw, playing his part in one of the goals with a run and cross that caused problems in the hosts' backline.

Winks had come in for praise from Blucerchiati boss Dejan Stankovic late last month for his progress after his injury.

"I'm pleased for Winks as he’s back playing football again," the Serbian told the Italian club's official website. "He’s suffered so much, but he’s given his all to get back and help the team out. I don’t want to heap the pressure on him because we can only get out of this situation as a squad. I can see it in everyone’s eyes that there’s a desire to turn the situation around. We’re in for a fight and we mustn’t let up for even a second."

Tanguy Ndombele (Napoli)

Tanguy Ndombele continues to struggle for starts in table-topping Napoli's side and on Sunday he was again used from the bench in the 3-0 win at Spezia. The 26-year-old Frenchman came off the bench to slot into midfield for the final 16 minutes of the match.

Reports in Italy suggest that Napoli will use the second half of the season to decide whether they will look to sign Ndombele permanently. There is reportedly a 30m euros (£26.7m) option to buy in the midfielder's loan deal but the Italian side are expected to look for a lower deal than that for a player who has just 537 Serie A minutes to his name this season.

Ndombele does look on course to become a Serie A title winner though with Napoli currently sitting 13 points clear at the top from second-placed Inter.

Sergio Reguilon (Atletico Madrid)

Reguilon remained an unused substitute for Atletico as they drew 1-1 with Getafe in La Liga on Saturday.

The Spaniard has not played a minute of the Madrid side's past three matches after missing a match through suspension following a red card earned through two yellow cards in four minutes late in the game at Almeria.

Reguilon will have a former Spurs team-mate to link up with now in Madrid after Matt Doherty's deadline day free transfer to Atletico on a six-month contract. The Irishman was also an unused substitute in the draw at Getafe.

Giovani Lo Celso (Villarreal)

Lo Celso continues his quest to return to match action after taking to the Villarreal training pitch in recent weeks.

The 26-year-old has been out of action since October after sustaining a hamstring injury that saw him cruelly miss out on a place in Argentina's successful World Cup squad and now it's a case of building up his fitness and sharpness.

Harvey White (Derby)

Harvey White got 22 minutes to his name on his Derby debut as they ran riot in a 5-0 win at home against Morecambe in League One on Saturday.

Derby boss Paul Warne was happy with the first showing from the 21-year-old, who made his Premier League debut last month under Antonio Conte and will help replace the injured Max Bird, who is set to be out for at least a month for Derby.

"He is good, trained today and was really good”, Warne told Rams TV. "Obviously losing Birdie to injury, he is the bottom of the three, he is a perfect replacement. “So we’re really lucky to get him and convince him to come.

"I am really pleased with him. He looks like a really good footballer – another left-footer. We seem to love signing left-footers here, so yes, he is a good kid."

Troy Parrott (Preston North End)

Parrott missed out on Saturday when Preston hosted Bristol City at Deepdale with a small problem that left boss Ryan Lowe unimpressed.

The 20-year-old Republic of Ireland international came off the bench in Preston's last two Championship matches but was unable to play in the FA Cup defeat at Spurs due to the competition rules. Parrott missed a chunk of the season while recovering from a freak hamstring injury sustained after scoring the winner for Preston at Norwich City at the start of October.

Both he and Ben Whiteman missed Saturday's defeat to Bristol and Lowe wanted answers from his medical department.

"They both had a little bit of a niggle from Thursday, Friday which I'm disappointed about because I feel Troy has been out for a while and we need to manage him a bit better. So I've had a word with the fitness department and the physio department," said the Preston boss.

"There are a couple of things in there that we've had to speak about, me, the fitness coach and the physios, how we can prevent it and help them a little better. I don't want to be losing any players on Thursdays and Fridays, definitely not.

"Ben Whiteman will probably train Monday, Tuesday and Troy will probably train on Thursday. With Troy, he's been champing at the bit to get back. He's got a little niggly groin injury and Whiteman is the same."

Dane Scarlett (Portsmouth)

Dane Scarlett was back to being an unused substitute for Portsmouth as they drew 1-1 with Barnsley on Saturday.

Other than a start last week, the minutes have dried up for the 18-year-old striker of late with him being an unused substitute in three of new manager John Mousinho's first four league games in charge of the south coast club.

However, Spurs decided not to act in the one-week window they had to recall the 18-year-old last month.

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