According to Football.London, Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Tanguy Ndombele is reportedly struggling to break into Luciano Spalletti’s match-day squad. It is understood that with a permanent exit not coming his way in the Summer transfer window he headed into Napoli on loan for a year but has not enjoyed a decent start with the Italian side after failing to earn a regular spot.
Ndombele’s Run Of Form In League Football
Ndombele was loaned to Olympique Lyon in the January transfer window earlier this year after falling down the pecking order at North London. He managed to produce two assists after only appearing in 11 matches for the french outfit last season before returning to Tottenham and asking for a permanent exit. At Napoli, he has only made six appearances and found the back of the net on one occasion as he often came onto the pitch as a late substitute.
The Longjumeau-born talent has tried making the most out of his appearances in his last campaign as he averaged 0.5 shots, 0.8 key passes, 1.5 dribbles and 2.3 tackles per game in Ligue 1 but has failed to put up impressive numbers in the Serie A so far. However, he was impressive with his ball distribution after completing 89.2% of his attempted passes in the French top flight and that has continued this season as he has maintained a pass completion rate of 91.5% in the Italian top flight as well (stats via whoscored).
Should Conte Call Him Back To Tottenham?
Ndombele is a defensive powerhouse; he doesn’t mind putting his foot into a tackle and can make some clever interceptions to win the ball back for his side. He does well to keep hold of the ball and distribute possession to his teammates.
Despite being a player with such calibre, he has fallen down the pecking order under Antonio Conte, which has seen him being loaned out in the last transfer window and again this summer. Conte does not wish to utilise him in the next campaign deeming him a surplus to what the Lilywhites require. However, the Italian tactician could not sanction his permanent exit as he could only send him out on loan to Napoli but with his recent struggles, it would be better if he was called back to North London and sold in the January transfer window.
As for Ndombele, moving away from North London seems like the only viable option left for him if he wishes to rejuvenate his career. However, any top-tier club would require him to be at peak form as at the age of 25 he certainly has plenty of time to improve but he would need to put in impressive displays in training and earn a spot in the playing XI for any club that takes him in.
