Pundit claims Hojbjerg’s arrival could spell the end of midfielder’s Spurs career

Former Sunderland striker Kevin Phillips believes that Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg’s arrival at Tottenham could spell the end of Tanguy Ndombele’s time at the club.

Reports indicate that an announcement from Tottenham is imminent for the Denmark international, who is said to have completed his medical at Hotspur Way on Monday (Alasdair Gold).

The midfielder will reportedly put pen to paper on a five-year contract worth £100,000 a week with Tottenham (Football Insider).

Ndombele, who is on double that amount (Sportac), has had a disappointing first season in North London after Spurs smashed their transfer record to sign him last summer.

The midfielder has struggled to get a consistent run of games under his belt since the arrival of Jose Mourinho partly due to injury (transfermarkt).

Reports indicate that Spurs are currently in negotiations with Inter Milan over a swap deal involving Ndombele and Milan Skriniar (Tuttosport via Sport Witness).

While Phillips predicted Hojbjerg to be a hit at Tottenham, he admitted that he expects the North Londoners to sacrifice Ndombele.

Speaking to Football Insider, the former Premier League golden boot winner said: “I would think that there will be at least one midfielder leaving (with Hojbjerg’s arrival).

“You need a decent squad in the Premier League but it is difficult to keep everyone on side. If he comes in somebody would leave.

“I have said that Ndombele might come good this year but reading between the lines he could be the one that is sacrificed and moved on, even though he has only been there a short period.

“Mourinho clearly likes Hojbjerg, he has been pursuing him for a while, so once he gets him through the door you would expect him to play a huge part in Tottenham’s season next year and someone will have to drop out.”

Spurs Web Opinion

I do not think Hojbjerg’s arrival affects Ndombele’s future as Mourinho was unlikely to trust the Frenchman in the midfield pivot. The former Lyon man has been deployed in a more advanced role by the Portuguese coach in the few occasions that he has used the midfielder. However, I would be surprised to see us cash-in on the 23-year-old as he simply does not seem to have won Mourinho’s trust.

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