‘Never Doubted Ndombele’s Quality,’ claims Mourinho

Tottenham Hotspur’s Tanguy Ndombele came off the bench last night to score the winner against Lokomotiv Plovdiv to secure Europa League qualification. The French midfielder was bought last season for a club-record fee of €60 million. However, since then, he has had a tough time adapting to London and in the Premier League, with many even speculating him transferring out of the club.

Does he have a spot in Mourinho’s team?

Ndombele still hasn’t found his place in Mourinho’s starting XI, but he is hoping he still has time to make a mark in the team with his contract running on till 2025. Last night, Ndombele was subbed in only at the 61’ st minute but still managed to put in a stunning performance, and ended the game with a touch off Lucas Moura’s cross to make it 2-1.

In the post-match conference, Mourinho stated, “Tanguy is in a process of evolution. Last season he wasn’t. Last season he was stuck in a situation where I couldn’t see evolution. In this moment he’s training very, very well.”

The Spurs boss also went on to emphasise on Tanguy’s quality, “In this moment, I believe in Tanguy. I never doubted his quality. Never. I doubted in some moments his motivation and commitment and professional attitude. In this moment I believe in him. Today we made this decision together to not start the game because he also feels that he needs a bit more but in this moment I think that Tanguy can do well for us.”

You can catch the full post-match interview below:

As Jose said, there’s no doubt about his ability, but it will be interesting to see how he fits into the club’s midfield with Spurs having an abundance of midfielders on hand, at the moment.

Also read: Europa League Qualification: Lokomotiv Plovdiv vs Tottenham Hotspur.