MX23RW : Sunday, September 29 09:55:32| >> :60:78:78:

Jose Mourinho hails "magnificent" Tanguy Ndombele performance

Jose Mourinho hails
© Reuters
Spurs' record signing scored a fine goal in Sunday's 3-1 victory at Sheffield United.

Jose Mourinho has insisted Tanguy Ndombele deserves all the praise for his Tottenham turnaround.

Spurs' record signing looked to have a bleak future when Mourinho arrived at the club after struggling to adapt to the Premier League, with the Portuguese regularly criticising the midfielder's hunger and fitness.

But this season has seen the 24-year-old come to the fore as a key player in Mourinho's side and his "genius" strike in a 3-1 win at Sheffield United will be long remembered as he produced an audacious flick over the goalkeeper's head when running away from goal.

It came at a vital moment, restoring the visitors' two-goal lead after David McGoldrick headed home following first-half goals from Serge Aurier and Harry Kane.

Mourinho gave Ndombele all the credit for his revival at the north London club.

He said: "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."

Tanguy Ndombele scores against Sheffield United
Tanguy Ndombele scored a wonderful goal against Sheffield United (Mike Egerton/PA)

Ndombele's position at the club looked hopeless until a meeting with chairman Daniel Levy last summer, which was shown in the Amazon Prime 'All or Nothing' series.

Levy was shown telling the Frenchman that Spurs wanted to keep him but he had to prove himself in a considered pep talk, and Mourinho stressed the credit for the turnaround belongs to Ndombele.

"It's the player's mentality, the player's will to train hard, the player's will to be available for the team, the player's desire to win, to earn or work for a place in the team. And the player is the most responsible," he added.

"Mr Levy's responsibility, in my opinion, is some, but is minimal compared with the player. But it's true, Mr Levy believed in the player and pushed the player in some conversations they had, that the door was open for him.

"And to me it's always the same: the door is always open, but the player cannot expect for me to go and bring him. It has to be for the player to walk through that door, and come in the direction of what the team needs from him. So total credit for Tanguy, and I think also Mr Levy deserves some."

Sheffield United manager Chris Wilder
Sheffield United manager Chris Wilder was on the sharp end of another defeat (Mike Egerton/PA)

For Sheffield United it was a familiar tale of defeat – their 16th in the Premier League – having finally won for the first time on Tuesday.

Boss Chris Wilder said: "I really fancied us and we did as a football club. We got paid a compliment with the way they set up and you could see, led by the manager, that they thought this was going to be a tough afternoon.

"Apart from the last 10 minutes, it wasn't a foregone conclusion. The goals really, at any level... after Tuesday night, the first thing we needed was to have a bright start and get a foothold in the game and we didn't."

ID:431035: cacheID:431035:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:8540:
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Tottenham Hotspur's Tanguy Ndombele celebrates scoring against Sheffield United in the Premier League on January 17, 2021
Read Next:
Premier League players keep on celebrating against government advice
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
6pm
Rams
@
Bears
6pm
Eagles
@
Buccaneers
6pm
Steelers
@
Colts
6pm
Saints
@
Falcons
6pm
Broncos
@
Jets
6pm
Vikings
@
Packers
6pm
Bengals
@
Panthers
6pm
Jags
@
Texans
9.05pm
Patriots
@
49ers
9.05pm
Washington
@
Cardinals
9.25pm
Chiefs
@
Chargers
9.25pm
Browns
@
Raiders
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool65011221015
2Manchester CityMan City6420146814
3Arsenal6420125714
4Chelsea6411157813
5Aston Villa5401107312
6Fulham632185311
7Newcastle UnitedNewcastle632187111
8Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton623110829
9Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest62316519
10Tottenham HotspurSpurs52129547
11Manchester UnitedMan Utd52125507
12Brentford6213810-27
13Bournemouth512258-35
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham6123610-45
15Everton6114715-84
16Leicester CityLeicester6033812-43
17Crystal Palace603359-43
18Ipswich TownIpswich503238-53
19Southampton501429-71
20Wolverhampton WanderersWolves6015616-101


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!