When Joe Rodon arrived to the Tottenham Hotspur training ground from Swansea City many fans were excited to see his development over the years.
Although he's played some important league matches in his past two seasons with the Club, Rodon's performances with the first team have not been as expected.
With high profile players above him in the pecking order, the opportunities for the 24 year-old have been extremely limited.
Rodon, who signed with Spurs in 2020 for a fee of around £11 million on a five-year contract, is a full international and starting centre-back for the Wales national team.
Antonio Conte on Joe Rodon
The left-footed centre-back was told by the manager Antonio Conte he is currently seen as a second option behind Eric Dier in the Spurs back line.
"The first thing that I tried to do – and am doing – is find the right position for every player," the Italian manager said. "In every position you have a double player, and in the characteristic, I see Joe (Rodon) behind Eric (Dier) in the central position.
This position is a singular position. If you’re a central defender on the right or the left, you have more options to play. To be behind the central defender, you have only one option.
Joe has showed me really, really great commitment, a will and desire to learn and improve himself. This is good.
A really good example for the other players. He’s a solid player that works and knows he wants to improve and I’m satisfied for the improvement I’m seeing in the training sessions about him."
Lack of opportunities
While Dier has been a key defender for Spurs this season, Rodon has made just six appearances in all competitions.
Since joining Spurs, Rodon has struggled to find regular game time under different managers and has only played a total of 20 games across all competitions.