Former Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Mousa Dembele ended his long association with the club last January as he departed for Guangzhou R&F.
The move for the 31-year-old wasn’t a great surprise really given his recent injury issues. This season saw only 13 appearances as he again struggled for fitness, and with him being out of contract next summer, cashing in now – at a reported £11million – from a business point of view makes a lot of sense.
Of course, with the injury situation at the club and lack of signings in both of the last transfer windows, plenty of fans were less than happy that we cashed in without ensuring a replacement, and he left with fond memories from his six and a half year spell that returned 250 showings.
Speaking to Sky Sports specifically about the move, the Belgian international felt it was simply time for something new as he looks to his own future.
“I’m a social guy I think. I’m not too serious. I don’t like to be too serious. I think off the pitch I can have a laugh with everyone. I like to see myself as open-minded. That is one of the reasons I wanted to come to China. I wanted to see something different. I wanted to have a different experience in life. I heard already there is good food in Guangzhou. I will try this a lot. I think my family will enjoy it as well here.”
He also spoke about the welcoming nature of his new club and how he was settling in already, despite the language barriers, and it reminded him very much of his time with us and the spirit in our camp, so he clearly has fond memories.
“The jokes and everything is similar to Tottenham. The group atmosphere is very comparable with Tottenham. I like this because in Tottenham it was a good group, everyone was very good together. I feel as though here that all the players have a good mentality I think.”
He obviously still has an eye on his old friends as well.
— Mousa Dembélé (@mousadembele) February 14, 2019