Nuno Espirito Santo has called for patience with Tanguy Ndombele after the midfielder put in a mixed display against Wolves yesterday.
Ndombele was handed his third successive start by Nuno in Tottenham’s Carabao Cup third-round clash at the Molineux and the midfielder started the game very positively.
The 24-year-old helped the away side dominate the midfield battle alongside Dele Alli and Oliver Skipp in the first half and gave Spurs the lead in the 14th minute with a composed finish.
The Lilywhites then doubled their lead through Harry Kane less than ten minutes later but Wolves scored either side of the interval to peg them back.
Ndombele would have been disappointed with his part in both goals that Tottenham conceded.
The midfielder did not do a good job of marking goalscorer, Leander Dendoncker for Wolves’ first and he also gave the ball away in a dangerous area in the lead up to Daniel Podence’s equaliser.
In the end, the mistakes did not prove costly as Tottenham emerged victorious on penalties and sealed progression through to the fourth round.
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Nuno insisted after the game that Ndombele needs time to get up to speed since he has only played three games so far this campaign.
When asked by Alasdair Gold about what he made of the former Lyon man’s performance and his part in the two goals Wolves scored, the Spurs boss responded: “Alasdair, let’s try to avoid as much as we can individual analysis.
“We will do it and we will do it amongst ourselves and I think we have to be patient with Tanguy because all that happened in pre-season and this is his third game and already we’ve had however many games we’ve played so far.
“So let’s be patient with all our players and patient with the time that they need to get to the level that I truly believe their talent can allow.”
Arguably, the biggest positive for Spurs yesterday was the return to form of Kane, who not only got on the scoresheet but also looked lively all game, but Nuno also refused to divulge too much about the striker’s individual performance.
When asked if he was delighted to see Kane back among the goals, the Portuguese coach responded: “I’ve just answered that question. It’s all about us.
“Just for you to understand what I’m trying to explain to you, in terms of the squad and in terms of the preparation of the squad, we have players who have 65, 70 sessions and we have players who have 15 sessions.
“Until we can balance everything, I think that will be the moment the players improve and get better. Harry did a very good game. I think he has much more to give and it’s about the team improving and growing together.”
Spurs Web Opinion
I feel much more positive about Nuno after our last two performances despite the fact that we lost 3-0 to Chelsea and needed a penalty shootout to overcome Wolves.
This is because we have looked much better in possession over the last two games and Nuno has also shown that he is willing to implement a higher press if necessary.
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