Inter Secures Long-Term Spence Deal for Right Flank Strength
Inter have made their move and made it big. The Italian champions have completed the permanent signing of Spence from Tottenham Hotspur, tying the 26-year-old to San Siro on a contract running until June 2031.
Fresh from celebrating his birthday, the England international has committed the prime years of his career to the Nerazzurri after clearing medical tests both with the club and the Italian Olympic Committee (CONI). The deal is significant on every level: Spence will reportedly earn around €2.5m per season plus performance bonuses, while Tottenham receive €31.5m upfront and a further €3.5m in potential add-ons linked to targets and appearances.
This is not a leap into the unknown for Inter. Spence already left his mark in Serie A during a sharp, six-month loan spell at Genoa in the 2024 season, a stint that turned heads in Milan. Those performances convinced Inter’s hierarchy that he had the engine, discipline and personality to handle Cristian Chivu’s demanding system.
Chivu wants his wing-backs to live on the touchline and never stop running. Spence fits that brief. Comfortable on both flanks, he can operate as a right or left wing-back, giving Inter rare tactical freedom in wide areas and cover across the line. For a side fighting on multiple fronts, that versatility is gold.
His reputation has grown well beyond club football. Spence’s stock soared during the 2026 World Cup in North America, where he became a fixture in the Three Lions’ back line. He played all eight of England’s matches, starting the semifinal defeat to Argentina and then the third-place playoff win over France. That run hardened his profile as a defender who can live with the pressure of the very highest stage.
His departure closes a chapter at Tottenham that began in July 2022, when Spurs brought him in from Middlesbrough for an initial £19m. Across 85 appearances, his time in north London was defined by persistence and adaptation, punctuated by loans and battles for minutes before his breakthrough at international level finally aligned with a major move.
Tottenham’s own reshaping of their defence helped unlock this transfer. The arrival of veteran full-back Andy Robertson on a free transfer from Liverpool gives Spurs a proven leader and fierce competitor on the left side of their back line, easing the blow of losing Spence and reshuffling the hierarchy in Ange Postecoglou’s squad.
For Inter, this is part of a broader English flavour to the summer. Spence is the second England international to walk through the doors at Appiano Gentile in this window, following John Stones’ free transfer from Manchester City. One brings aerial authority and calm in the middle; the other brings pace and width on the outside.
The picture is clear: Inter are arming Chivu with experience, versatility and international pedigree as they prepare to launch their Serie A title defence. Their season opens at San Siro against Monza on August 22, and with Spence now locked in until 2031, the right flank looks built not just for that night, but for the long road ahead.
