‘He’s not fit enough’ – Glenn Hoddle singles out Spurs player after loss to Chelsea

Glenn Hoddle has claimed that Tanguy Ndombele is not currently fit enough after watching the midfielder in action against Chelsea.

Nuno Espirito Santo named the Frenchman in his starting line up for the visit of the London rivals to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium yesterday afternoon.

Ndombele was making his first Premier League appearance of the campaign after a turbulent summer which saw him fail to feature in any of the club’s pre-season fixtures, and had previously only played 79 minutes of first team football under Nuno, which came during Thursday’s 2-2 draw at Rennes (transfermarkt).

The former Lyon man had reportedly asked to leave the club this summer after struggling to adapt to life in England (The Athletic).

The 24-year-old featured for 62 minutes against Chelsea before being replaced by Oliver Skipp.

Ndombele was arguably Tottenham’s best performer against Rennes and once again showed early promise when facing Chelsea, but tired towards the hour mark.

Hoddle told Premier League Productions (19/09/21 at 6:55 pm) when asked about the change in personnel against Thomas Tuchel’s side: “Yes, I do think they are behind,” said Hoddle. “They look like that.

“The first 20 minutes of a football match, for a professional player, you should have the intensity, you should have the energy to close down and have a picture in your mind. Slowly, but surely, they got fatigued and there was too much space on the edge of the area.

“Ndombele, in the end, he has got to get himself fit to play football. He’s not fit enough, the lad. He’s got ability.”

SpursWeb Opinion

In Ndombele’s defence, it is obvious that his match fitness is lacking considering the fact that he did not play in pre-season or the opening few fixtures.

It is clear to see that we need him to improve his conditioning and he could become a massive asset this season, in what is a side who are desperately missing a creative spark.

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