Player Watch - Tanguy Ndombele

[spursfan77]

Ease him back in. Get him up to speed and sorted out over the rest of the season so he can hit the ground running next year. Sure we massively need him now, but we also need him properly fit and firing.

 

[Thenewcat]

Ease him back in. Get him up to speed and sorted out over the rest of the season so he can hit the ground running next year. Sure we massively need him now, but we also need him properly fit and firing.

Why should it take him that long to get him fit? He’s got the winter break coming and should be working his balls off to get his fitness up. I don’t see why he shouldn’t be playing twice a week if needed in March and April

 

[spursfan77]

Why should it take him that long to get him fit? He’s got the winter break coming and should be working his balls off to get his fitness up. I don’t see why he shouldn’t be playing twice a week if needed in March and April

The whole fitness thing is a complete mystery isn't it. I agree with you, but he doesn't look like he can currently.

 

[EZSpur]

If we're able to get him up to speed and keep him fit he will take us to another level. The fact that Jose has not rushed him back this time bodes well for the club taking the appropriate care to ensure as best as possible that he does not have another recurrence. He's a special talent and we would stand to benefit tremendously from having him available in the run in.

So, genuine question.
Is he actually still recovering from a knock or is generally unfit?
Only reason i ask is because he has had issues with fitness in the past.

Not having a pop though! I'm just desperate to see him play full games - i think he's class!

 

[brendanb50]

So, genuine question.
Is he actually still recovering from a knock or is generally unfit?
Only reason i ask is because he has had issues with fitness in the past.

Not having a pop though! I'm just desperate to see him play full games - i think he's class!

I'm no authority on this but it would strike me as a bit of a combination of the two issues. His fitness levels aren't Spurs/PL standard, so fatigue becomes a factor. Then when tired, it's very easy for players to pick up strains and niggles. I figure we're seeing this mix of problems in him.

FWIW i think it will be next season when we'll see a fully fit TN. We need to be patient with him this year, hard given his clear ability, then see him through a full pre-season with a solid fitness program. Next year we'll see an even more exceptional player.

 

[For the love of Spurs]

He should be playing instead of Winks.

He is brilliant but its obvious he cannot handles 90 mins so Winks has to play, I also don’t see what benefit you get sticking him in the DM role.

 

[Hakkz]

I'm no authority on this but it would strike me as a bit of a combination of the two issues. His fitness levels aren't Spurs/PL standard, so fatigue becomes a factor. Then when tired, it's very easy for players to pick up strains and niggles. I figure we're seeing this mix of problems in him.

FWIW i think it will be next season when we'll see a fully fit TN. We need to be patient with him this year, hard given his clear ability, then see him through a full pre-season with a solid fitness program. Next year we'll see an even more exceptional player.

His playstyle probably increases the risk as well. Turning and twisting when dribbling.

 

[brendanb50]

His playstyle probably increases the risk as well. Turning and twisting when dribbling.

Yep, he's very dynamic but as you say, that style will give tired muscles etc. more opportunities to strain. We've seen it with a number of players this season too.

 

[JUSTINSIGNAL]

So, genuine question.
Is he actually still recovering from a knock or is generally unfit?
Only reason i ask is because he has had issues with fitness in the past.

Not having a pop though! I'm just desperate to see him play full games - i think he's class!

Think he is generally unfit. Mourinho has been quoted saying NDombele has been put on a special training programme and educated about eating right etc...

It's been clear to anyone who has watched him huff and puff his way through matches so far this season that he doesn't have the required level of fitness. Once he does get up to speed though, he should be immense.

 

[EZSpur]

Think he is generally unfit. Mourinho has been quoted saying NDombele has been put on a special training programme and educated about eating right etc...

It's been clear to anyone who has watched him huff and puff his way through matches so far this season that he doesn't have the required level of fitness. Once he does get up to speed though, he should be immense.

Thanks for the info!
Just strikes me as friggin amazing that a modern day player (an international in fact) can have such bad fitness levels.
And for us to spend £65m on an unfit player is just crazy lol

I remember VDV used to struggle to play a full 90 mins - but he had issues with his hamstring (or back....i can't quite remember), but he was also quite a bit older.

I can understand it can take time to get used to a change in pace, physicality and even game strategy - but fitness! C'mon!
Barring injury - for a player of his age and technical ability he should be ready to go from day 1.

Listen! It's Monday and i'm in a bad mood - ignore the above.
I still love him!

 

[VegasII]

N’domburger

A little joke, he’s triffic...when he plays.

 

[EQP]

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[popstar7]

Just 60 seconds and you can see the potential there. Touch, balance, vision, passing. He's got it all. It'll be a crime if this guy doesn't make it here.

 

[synththfc]

He looked smaller yesterday.

Also, could've been because he was only on for 20 min, but he seemed full of energy and pressing. Promising.

 

[JCRD]

Absolutely Ndomenal* player.

I love players with the ability to manipulate/commit opponents by swivelling their hips while leaving the ball untouched. He's a joy to watch. Fingers crossed, as @scat1620 says, he can regain consistent fitness, as I think he'd be the first name on the team sheet.

*I'm not even going to apologise for the worst pun in SC history.

The hips dont lie man

Definitely a song in there somewhere

Ps the apology really isnt accepted - get your coat

 

[walworthyid]

You can see why people were raving about him. So much talent. Fitness is quite difficult to get during the season. You have to consistently push to exhaustion in order to get the body to adapt. The problem is that you are then too tired to play at the same intensity and vulnerable to injuries. For example, Im recovering from a serious knee injury and haven't done any longer runs for almost a year. I ran 7.5k yesterday, 5 minutes slower than I was able to pre-injury and am still feeling the effects more than 24 hrs later. I'm a personal trainer and am very fit, but my body just doesnt have the endurance reserves because I haven't put that type of work in for so long. It will take a good few runs to build up that endurance fitness and probably several months of hard work to get back to my pre-injury times. Tanguy is having to put those extra endurance sessions in, as well as match specific training to maintain/improve short-burst and recovery fitness and sharpness etc as a result he just doesnt have the recovery time to then play at a high intensity for 90 minutes.

When you do pre-season and have an injury lay off, it is much easier to regain the fitness. He has probably never been premier league fit before and so his body is having to move into uncharted territory. I doubt that we will see him at his best consistently until next season.

He has the potential to be immense. Perhaps the most talented midfield player in the prem. He is far more dynamic than pogba but possibly lacks his poise.

Add a quality dm to lo celso and ndombele and you have a midfield 3 as good as anything in the league.

 

[walworthyid]

Why should it take him that long to get him fit? He’s got the winter break coming and should be working his balls off to get his fitness up. I don’t see why he shouldn’t be playing twice a week if needed in March and April

Doesnt work like that unfortunately. Endurance takes weeks if not months, particularly if you haven't been that fit before. Short-burst and endurance training is totally different and difficult to do at the same time. If he could just work on endurance and not play or train for a month or 6 weeks, he could get to where he needs to be, unfortunately that isnt possible. So he just has to be brought on slowly and carefully managed through this season.

You can see why poch was so reluctant to integrate new players quickly. You can also see why this would have affected recruitment. If poch couldn't get a player until August, especially one from a different league, he would see it as a pointless purchase because the player wouldnt be fit enough until christmas.

 

[MichaelPawson]

If he was considered unfit by French league standards last year, then he was definitely unfit by the standards of the Premier League. Even if he's on the right track now, it was always going to take a while for him to get up to speed, and he shows enough flashes that it's easy for me to be patient with him. He just needs some lifestyle changes and a long run of good health.

 

[chinaman]

He looked smaller yesterday.

Also, could've been because he was only on for 20 min, but he seemed full of energy and pressing. Promising.

The tummy has gone down quite a bit.

 

[EQP]

I think I've found out why Tanguy is always injured, look at the way Serge and Lamela "celebrate" with him

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