Speaking to Football Insider, Darren Bent has claimed Tottenham manager Jose Mourinho simply “can’t rely on” Tanguy Ndombele.
What did he say?
Ndombele has endured a difficult debut campaign in north London, struggling for both form and fitness. All in all, he has played just 19 times in the Premier League, whilst he came under heavy fire from Mourinho himself after a particularly disappointing display away at Burnley.
And now, former Spurs ace Bent has suggested that the Frenchman’s lack of consistency and durability means he isn’t your typical Mourinho player, and felt he isn’t a risk worth taking.
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He said: “I think when you’ve got somebody like Ndombele, with all that ability and all that quality, but he can’t produce it on a regular basis – Mourinho doesn’t need players like that right now.
“Jose’s probably thinking to himself, that he’s got all the ability in the world, but he needs someone who can play week after week. He can’t take the risk of it being every now and then. They can’t rely on him as much they would like.”
Consistency
For all the criticism that has headed Ndombele’s way this season, there can be no question that he has shown flashes of the enormous potential that prompted Spurs to splash out big-money to sign him from French side Lyon last summer.
A super long-range strike against Aston Villa under-lined that to a tee, and it would be a major shame if the Frenchman didn’t go on to become a long-term success at the club.
But with Mourinho in charge, the room for a player to make mistakes and grow into his craft is minimal. The Portuguese boss has delivered instant success almost everywhere he’s been, winning domestic and European titles.
If Ndombele doesn’t sharpen his act very soon, then the midfielder could be walking out the exit door very soon.
Meanwhile, Spurs fans react to an update on their chase for this left-back.