Djed Spence has had quite the 2025.
He's added an array of Premier League wingers (and Doncaster Rovers' Damola Ajayi) to his penitentiary and represented his country, but he'll perhaps take the most pride in being listed as the fastest player of the opening Champions League gameweek of 2025/26.
You'll never sing that.
Spence has come on leaps and bounds over the past year, and the faith Ange Postecoglou eventually showed in the previously maligned full-back has been mirrored by new manager Thomas Frank. The Englishman has recorded five Premier League starts through six games, and also appeared in Europe's premier club competition for the very first time, as Spurs edged past Villarreal 1-0.
Spence started at left-back that night, and was tasked with supporting summer addition Xavi Simons on the overlap. It was perhaps during one of these forays when the 25-year-old recorded his record speed.
Djed Spence was the fastest player of Champions League Gameweek 1
🏃🏻♂️💨 Ahead of Matchday 2 in the Champions League league phase, a check on who clocked the fastest speed on Matchday 1.
— FotMob (@FotMob) September 30, 2025
Spurs man Djed Spence reached 33.4 km/h in the game vs. Villarreal, with Bradley Barcola not far behind him. pic.twitter.com/sJCudvEFEn
Many wouldn't have been overly surprised had a Lilywhite topped the speed charts during Gameweek 1 of the league phase. Micky van de Ven played 90 minutes against the Yellow Submarine, and the imperious Dutchman's burners are well-documented.
In fact, Van de Ven is the fastest recorded player in Premier League history, reaching a top speed of 37.38 km/h. Since this data has been recorded, the Spurs centre-back has notched three of the five highest speeds in the competition.
However, Spence has so far stolen his thunder in Europe, with FotMob rating the full-back as the fastest operator in the Champions League so far this term. His top speed of 33.4 km/h ranked the highest among all players in Gameweek 1.
Spence just edged out Paris Saint-Germain's Bradley Barcola (33.2 km/h) and Atalanta's Raoul Bellanova (33.0 km/h). Van de Ven's 32 km/h was the 15th fastest.
The Englishman's speed doubtless contributes to his impressive ability to lock opposing wingers up one-on-one. While there's a nonchalance to his game that can be exploited, Spence is one of the very best at what he does when he's what you might describe as "locked in". His capacity to reach top speed in an instant means wingers struggle to beat him on the outside, and his long legs aid his ability to pinch the ball off his opponent, even if they create a yard of space.
He'll continue to lead the Champions League speed charts until Van de Ven completes his first midweek recovery run.