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Djed Spence has revealed details of a chat he had with Jonathan Woodgate that ultimately led to his first team breakthrough.

The 19-year-old Londoner also said he rejected the opportunity to go out on loan and has spoken about his recent "blip".

Spence has been one of Boro’s undoubted success stories in an otherwise disappointing campaign. He made an immediate impact when he was named in the starting XI for the home clash with Charlton on December 7, winning the man of the match award as well as plaudits from the watching fans and media.

From that point on he rarely missed a match until he was dropped for the away game at Barnsley on February 22.

Now he’s been reflecting on his season so far in an interview with The Athletic website and Spence admits he had hoped his big chance would have arrived sooner than it did.

At the end of last season Spence was one of the exciting young players tipped to break into the team in 2019/20 as Boro looked to build a new side on a more modest budget.

But he failed to impress in pre-season and other young players, including Hayden Coulson and Stephen Walker, moved higher up the pecking order.

He said: “I was in and around the first team during pre-season but never quite got the opportunity to play.

“I trained occasionally but was with the Under-23s. I remember on my birthday (August 9) we played Aston Villa but I got injured and was out for two months.

“I was a bit despondent and demotivated playing for the Under-23s and I felt I needed to make the step up, it wasn’t progressing me as a player.

“It’s so much less competitive, it’s not enough compared to first team level. The meaning of it, it’s not the same.

“I was talking to the club saying I wasn’t happy playing Under-23s. I wasn’t even training at all with the first team. I had a meeting with the manager and he was telling me what he needed from me to play in the first team. He said, ‘You need to show something and take the opportunity’.

“Eventually they said. Do you think you should go on loan?’. But I thought I was capable of playing higher than where they were offering me. I wanted to wait for my opportunity. I believed I would get my chance.”

Spence’s chance came against the Addicks and he certainly grabbed the opportunity with both hands, though he reveals he was guided through Boro’s 1-0 by experienced team-mate George Friend.

“I played well in the second half so they told George to go round and make sure I was still concentrating,” he added.

“I could hear him talking to me, encouraging me and motivating me. That was a big plus for me, he didn’t have to do that, I appreciated him helping me out.”

Not everything has gone to plan for Spence, though. He was dropped for the Barnsley game by Jonathan Woodgate, who said after the match that, ‘Djed needs to do more’.

He later expanded on his initial comments, adding: “People need to realise that when you get to a certain level, you can’t drop below those standards.”

Spence spent some time out in the cold before returning to the matchday squad for the home game with Leeds. He then made brief appearances as a late sub against Nottingham Forest and Charlton.

Now he’s focusing on winning a place in the starting line-up when football finally resumes.

“There’s always tests in life but you’ve got to keep going, training well, don’t let it get to you then when I get that chance again I need to do well again, show everyone why I was starting and not let it get to you,” he said.

“It’s just a blip and you’ve got to get through it. Having them behind me makes me want to play even better.”