Djed Spence's First Training Session with Inter: What to Expect

Djed Spence steps onto the grass at last. Almost a month after swapping Tottenham Hotspur for Inter in a €35m summer move, the England international has finally trained outside at Appiano Gentile – but his first taste of San Siro still looks set to wait.

Club photographers captured Spence working with the group on Thursday, images quickly backed up by reports in Italy confirming it was his first full session on the pitch since joining the Nerazzurri. For a player signed at significant cost and with clear expectations, it has been a curious slow burn.

World Cup hangover and a delayed start

The 26-year-old arrived in Milan on the back of a draining summer. His run with England to the World Cup semi-finals earned him an extended break, and, as reported by La Gazzetta dello Sport, he returned carrying a minor physical problem that wiped out the final stretch of his pre-season.

That detail goes a long way to explaining why Spence has yet to feature in Simone Inzaghi’s plans, even as another England World Cup squad member, John Stones, has already clocked three appearances since his own move to San Siro earlier in the window. While Stones has been thrown straight into the rhythm of Serie A, Spence has been kept on ice.

The sight of him back on the grass changes the mood around his situation, but not the timetable.

Inter in no rush

Inter face Udinese at home on Monday night, a fixture that might, in different circumstances, have been circled as a natural debut opportunity. Instead, according to SportMediaset, the club hierarchy and technical staff are in no mood to gamble.

The message is clear: no shortcuts, no forced comebacks. The priority is to have Spence fully conditioned, integrated, and ready to withstand the demands of a long season rather than chasing a quick introduction to please the crowd.

The pressure will come. A big fee, a big club, a fanbase eager to see what their new full-back can bring down the right flank. But Inter’s planning points elsewhere.

SportMediaset report that the home match against Parma on October 10, the first game after the international break, is the date quietly pencilled in for Spence’s debut. That target offers him a defined runway: more sessions, more tactical work, and the chance to build sharpness away from the spotlight.

For now, the Nerazzurri will go into Udinese without their new defender, trusting the existing structure while Spence plays catch-up. The first steps have finally been taken on the training pitch. The real question is what kind of impact he makes when that long-awaited first stride onto the San Siro turf finally arrives.