Tottenham Hotspur correspondent Alasdair Gold has been speaking on his latest YouTube video to discuss Tanguy Ndombele and his role at Spurs.
The Frenchman has failed to make an impression under Antonio Conte, with just 80 minutes of Premier League action under his belt under the 52-year-old (via Transfermarkt).
Does Ndombele have a future with Spurs?
Yes
No
In truth, it has been a season to forget for Tottenham’s record signing after failing to earn his spot in the starting XI after a summer of transfer speculation.
However, it was the Frenchman’s actions on the touchline as a substitute that have caught the attention of the Spurs journalist in recent weeks as he watches on from the press box.
Ndombele was an unused substitute in the draw against Southampton, and Gold has revealed the midfielder’s questionable warm-up style on the sidelines – which has been noted by people within the club.
“He’s the most gifted player at Tottenham Hotspur. He’s incredible. But when you watch him, what he does – and especially off the ball – does not scream ‘pick me, pick me, pick me’. He doesn’t.
“I watched again, I watched him do it against [Crystal] Palace, I think he did, and I watched him do it yesterday [v Southampton] as well, I think. Tanguy doing a warm-up during a match, when the subs are going up and down the touchline – it’s like a sport in itself.
“He shuffles down the touchline and walks along, mostly watching the game to see what’s happening. And he gets to the area where the subs are meant to kind of warm up.
“He continues to watch the game. He occasionally does a little bit of kicks his legs up, put his heels up behind him as he remembers he’s got to do that, but mostly, he’s kind of just standing there swaying, watching the game. And you know, I think from a medical point of view, for someone that’s had lots of little annoying injuries in the past, muscular injuries, you do wonder why he’s not warming up properly.
“It’s been noted. It has – I know there’s people in the club that are very aware of this kind of lackadaisical warm-up he does. They’re aware of it, it has been noted.”
TIF Thoughts on Ndombele’s future…
Ndombele arrived at Tottenham with a club-record £54m price tag around his neck and it is probably fair to say he has been a hugely underwhelming acquisition for the north London club.
Alongside his inconsistent performances in the Spurs XI, the 25-year-old brought a huge deal of disruption to the club over the summer which has inadvertently affected his 2021/22 campaign having missed the beginning of the campaign as a result.
And despite the arrival of one of the world’s most highly-regarded managers, it seems to have had little effect on Ndombele, who has clearly not impressed Conte.
If Ndombele’s warm-ups as a substitute are unconvincing to the journalists in the press box, then we can only imagine what Conte is thinking standing in the dugout.
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