Tottenham update: Lyon seeing real Tanguy Ndombele

Two weeks ago, Tottenham loanee Tanguy Ndombele was lighting up France and destined to stay at Lyon; now the Frenchman is supposedly on the way out, so what is going on?

Tanguy Ndombele is a footballer that is always going to split opinions. Undoubtedly as naturally skilled as any player in the world, Ndombele’s issue has been one of motivation and drive. After less than two months into his second stay at Lyon, on loan from Tottenham, Ndombele has gone from staying to maybe staying to going back to north London, which seems right from our experience here, Spurs.

Ndombele flashes but fades like at Tottenham

Maybe scoring the incredible goal against Manchester City in his first match for Spurs set up unrealistic expectations of Ndombele. However, it was only flashing like that goal that fans ever saw. The professional approach to the game necessary to succeed in the middle of a Premier League team never surfaced. As a result, Ndombele struggled to play or contribute for Tottenham consistently.

When Ndombele went back to Lyon at the end of the January transfer window, like with Tottenham, he immediately made an impression. In his second match back and first 90 minutes, Ndobmele bossed the park against Nice as Lyon won 2-0.

So good was Ndombele, teamtalk.com considered that Tottenham would be frustrated by the display. Reports followed that successful game as recent as last week, indicating Spurs and Lyon were working on extending Ndombele’s loan, which would be great for Tottenham.

However, since that match, where Ndombele was widely praised, and video of his skill was making the rounds online, Ndombele has regressed to the mean and has not played in two of the last three games for Lyon. The most recent rumours regarding his future are that he will be returning to N17 in the summer.

Ideally, from a Spurs perspective, Ndombele kicks on and stays in France, ending his tenure at Tottenham. The reality may not be so rosy, and the club may again be scrounging for a loan in the summer.