Tottenham left it late to secure the three points against newly-promoted Aston Villa on Saturday evening.
John McGinn had given the visitors the lead in the ninth minute with Tottenham struggling to create.
That changed when Christian Eriksen was introduced in the 64th minute and club-record signing Tanguy Ndombele started paying Spurs back with his first goal in the 73rd minute.
A late Harry Kane double in the 86th and 90th minutes completed the comeback.
Writing in his BBC column, Garth Crooks was full of praise of Ndombele but said he “has much more to offer”.
“So what do Spurs have here? I’ve seen Moussa Dembele, Eric Dier and Victor Wanyama make promising starts at White Hart Lane but none of them started like Tanguy Ndombele.
“The Frenchman’s debut goal that put Spurs back in the game against Aston Villa was glorious.
“I’ve seen better performances but seldom have I seen better finishes on a debut. I’m told that Tottenham’s record signing has much more to offer which is just as well. Tottenham have had some wonderful midfielders over the years and he’s got some big shoes to fill.”
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So how did Ndombele do on his debut? According to WhoScored he was the third-best player on the pitch, behind Kane and Lucas Moura, with a match rating of 7.58.
Pochettino echoed Crooks’ verdict saying afterwards that “it was a fantastic performance. But to be honest there is a lot to improve, he only showed 30 or 40 per cent of his potential.”
If that’s the case then Tottenham have got a very special player on their hands.
According to Wyscout, Ndombele made 56 passes on Saturday with an accuracy of 89.5%. He had an accuracy of 100% for his two long passes and the same for all seven of his passes to the final third. He also completed 100% of his four dribbles.
Add the vital goal to the mix and that’s a very successful debut. If there’s more to come then he will be a very successful signing for the club.