Tottenham Hotspur’s record signing arrived with a heavy weight of expectation on his shoulders and so far, he has proven his worth.
Tanguy Ndombele was regarded as one of Europe’s hottest midfield talents before signing for Spurs and has immediately exhibited exactly what he can bring to north London.
His Premier League debut against Aston Villa proved, despite his tender age of 22, that he is a leader. The Lilywhites were staring defeat in the face before Ndombele stepped up to the plate and scored an excellent goal to set Spurs on the path to victory.
In those matches, you need players who are willing to take responsibility and provide something special – and what a special moment it was. Villa were resilient and it looked to be their day before Ndombele took matters into his own hands and sparked life into the Spurs team.
https://twitter.com/ballersglory/status/1160249787037429760
Mauricio Pochettino’s side then traveled to Manchester to face the Premier League champions. City were excellent and deserved to win the match, and I think without Ndombele’s contribution, they would’ve done exactly that.
When you look at his individual statistics from last weekend’s 2-2 draw with Pep Guardiola’s side, they are thoroughly impressive. Offensively, Ndombele completed four dribbles, one key pass and assisted Erik Lamela for the opening goal. His confidence on the ball and taking it past the City midfield was outstanding and provided Spurs with an outlet in the middle of the park.
Throughout the course of 90 minutes at the Etihad Stadium, Ndombele completed 46 passes, achieving a pass success rate of 87%. He omitted excellent calmness against a quality-packed City midfield and relieved pressure at crucial stages of the match.
But defensively is where he made the most substantial mark. The France midfielder completed five tackles (the most of any player on the pitch) and two interceptions (the most among the Spurs ranks). Ndombele deserves enormous amounts of credit for producing such statistics against one of the best Premier League teams in history.
Tanguy Ndombele vs Man City:
100% duel success
100% dribble success
100% tackle success
87% pass success
66 touches
39 passes completed
10 duels won
5 tackles won
4 dribbles completed
1 assistOur unique 22 year old is about to wreak havoc under Pochettino. #thfc pic.twitter.com/Ij863L0tbo
— Hotspur Lane (@HotspurLane) August 18, 2019
It is imperative that Spurs keep the 22-year-old at the core of the squad and the rest of the team is fitted around him. Pochettino has an outstanding talent on his hands and early signs indicate that English football will not effect the Frenchman’s performances.