‘I believe in Tanguy’ – Mourinho opens up on the progress he is seeing in Ndombele

As much as a Tottenham player can be a hero in a Europa League qualifier against Lokomotiv Plovdiv, Tanguy Ndombele was that man this evening.

The Lilywhites found themselves 1-0 down to the home side in Bulgaria with just 15 minutes to find a reply or face getting knocked out of the competition.

Spurs were handed a much-needed lifeline in the 80th minute when the referee not only awarded a penalty but also showed two red cards to Plovdiv players.

Harry Kane stepped up and smashed the spot-kick into the top corner, with Spurs still needing one more goal to avoid extra time and potentially penalties.

Five minutes later, Tanguy Ndombele was there to tap home a Lucas Moura cross to make it 2-1 with just minutes to spare, sending Spurs through to the next qualifier round.

Despite enduring a torrid first season in North London, particular under Mourinho, the Spurs head coach has now claimed that he is seeing progress in Ndombele.

Mourinho said (Alasdair Gold): “Tanguy is in a process of evolution. Last season he wasn’t. He was in a situation where I couldn’t see evolution. Now he’s training very, very well. I believe in Tanguy. Never doubted his ability but doubted his effort & motivation. Now I think he can do well for us.”

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