What do we
know about Tanguy Ndombele Alvaro
Well, I’ve
seen him play… and if he continues on his
uphill rise then he will become a magnificent player to behold. But that is if
all goes to plan, and as we know, not everything goes to plan in this crazy
world of football.. or as the European’s say, Fotbal. We’ve purchased a few
turkey’s before, and we’ve purchased those that the supporters have booed, only
for them to come good all of a sudden (Sissoko springs to mind).
He was born
in 1996, which makes him 22, well at least for a couple of months, then he gets
his old age pension on the 28th December and becomes an old man of 23. All
within the blink of an eye.
He’s
French… let us not hold that against him, so is Lloris and look where that got
him. Sissoko is also French. And what else is French famous for? The Effiel
Tower, wine and shipping the Statue of Liberty to America… oh, and they fought
with the American’s against the British in the war of Independence. Oh… (yes,
another ‘oh’ again) and let us not
forget that the French collaborated with a certain unmentionable in the war.
So, there you have it in a wooden box… (he is also of Congolese descent). Of
course, we can’t blame any French citizen for past countries foibles. If we
did, just imagine how much pig swallow we’d be in!
When he was
a nipper, he played for FC Épinay Athlético, a club based in Épinay-sous-Sénart,
about 13 miles south-east of Paris, in Essone. He then moved to Brittany when
he was just 14 so that he could play for Guingamp, where he spent three
seasons. He wasn't offered a professional contract at the end of his expansion.
At only 16, he made his senior debut, on 11 January 2014, with the reserves. He
replaced Vital N'Simba near the final whistle (enough time to give him no time
at all to smell the grass).
Still with
the smell of nothing in his nostrils, he signed for SC Amiens, who had just
been relegated from French Ligue 2 in June 2014. He took this as a chance to
trial at numerous clubs (Auxerre, Caen, and Angers) but wasn't signed by any of
them (not a good start or recommendation to prospective employers.. you can’t
have everything, and he never said he was Pele). The issue was that he was
criticised for being a Jelly-tubby (overweight in ordinary language… or English
language, French words will be with recognisable, but put in such a way that it
would be indecipherable to those that can only speak one language or
paraphrasing Henry Ford, any language so long as it was English). Anyway - sorry
about the excursion - this was the main
reason why he wasn't signed by clubs, even though trialists believed he was a
good apple.
Ndombele
played 2 seasons in Championnat National 3 with the Amiens reserve team. He
only played one match during the 2014-2015 season, the 8 November 2014, once again,
coming on late in that game. He becomes a regular during the 2015-2016 season,
taking part in 18 games. He starts for the first time on 5 September 2015 at
the age of 18 and 9 months, to put it precisely.
Then the
big break. On 31 August 2017, Ndombele
moved to Lyon on a one-year loan. According to a French magazine, Lyon paid €2
million for the loan. Lyon also secured a chance to sign him permanently for €8
million, plus a possible €250,000 in bonuses and 20% of any profit made should
he be transferred from Lyon to another club. Not bad going for a Jelly-tubby,
or once was a Jelly-tubby.
He then
made his competitive debut for Lyon's first team in the 2–0 Ligue 1 away loss
to Paris Saint-Germain on 17 September 2017; he started the match and was
replaced by Christopher Martins in the 72nd minute. On 15 February 2018,
Ndombele scored a goal (his first career competitive goal for Lyon's first
team) in the 46th minute of their 3–1 home win over Villarreal CF in the round
of 32 first leg of the 2017–18 UEFA Europa League. The boy is making progress,
and people were starting to sit up and take notice. Then his big break came and
through hard negotiations with Lyons chairman and ours a deal was struck. Yes,
money was splashed by Daniel Levy to get his man. The deal worth €62 million
(£55.45 million) plus up to €10 million (£8.97 million) in add-ons. Now his
career will shine brightly with Pochettino guiding him in the right direction.
While we
are on the subject of Mr Ndombele, let us also mention that on the 11 October
2018, Ndombele made his senior France debut by coming on as a substitute for
Paul Pogba – yes, that Paul Pogba, of Manchester United fame… the man who is a
pain in the never regions for some at United. That was in the 68th minute (that
is coming on for Pogba, not the 68th minute he was a pain for
United!) of the friendly match against Iceland, the country, not the Freezer Company, at the Stade du Roudourou in Guingamp that ended in a 2–2 draw.
So, there
you have it. A new legend, hopefully, in the making. A skilled-player that will
be part of the next chapter in Pochettino’s rebuilding for the next level of
Tottenham’s Glory, Glory future. And he won’t be the last purchase by Levy and
Pochettino… oh, no. Now we are in our new stadium we will start to rock and
roll and hopefully keep United and Arsenal under us, while simultaneously
trying to leapfrog City, Liverpool and Chelsea to the number one spot.
Easy-peasy. What more can you ask for? Oh, yes, a few – many – trophies on the
way as well (we’d like). That dream of standing on the shoulders of United,
Liverpool, City, Chelsea and Arsenal is no longer a vision but an
ever-encroaching reality. COYS!
By Glenn
Renshaw
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