Mourinho hails Ndombele for taking ‘responsibility’ and turning round his fortunes at Spurs

Jose Mourinho has hailed Tanguy Ndombele for taking ‘responsibility’ and turning around his fortunes at Tottenham this season.

Ndombele arrived at Spurs in a club-record £55m deal from Lyon in 2019 but endured a disappointing debut season in the Premier League, including being singled out by Mourinho for stinging criticism following a 1-1 draw with Burnley in March.

The France international had struggled to make an impact and was withdrawn at half-time by the Spurs boss, who later gave a scathing public assessment of the midfielder’s ineffective display at Turf Moor.

Nobody.

Absolutely no one.

Tanguy Ndombele… #THFC ⚪️ #COYS pic.twitter.com/5Qo6EMrtQK

— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) January 17, 2021

Ndombele has since bounced back this season to emerge as a key figure for the north London side and scored a stunning goal in the 3-1 win at Sheffield United on Sunday, with Mourinho hailing the 24-year-old for taking ‘responsibility’ in salvaging his career at the club.

“I coach for so many years, had so many players and I have enough experience to say and to feel that when a player is not playing very well, it’s his responsibility, and when a player turns things around and brings his performance level to a very high level, it’s also his responsibility.

“It’s a great example that with me the door is always open. The door of the team is always open, and when a player is not playing he has to try to understand why and he has to try to understand how can he walk through that door. He understood, he understood.

“The goal is amazing, but I don’t care about the goal, I care about the performance and the performance was magnificent and I’m really pleased that he’s come to this level. He’s playing very, very well.”

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