Tanguy Ndombele Alvaro (born 28 December 1996) is a French professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Ligue 1 club Nice.

Tanguy Ndombele
Personal information
Full name Tanguy Ndombele Alvaro
Date of birth (1996-12-28) 28 December 1996 (age 27)
Place of birth Longjumeau, France
Height 1.81 m (5 ft 11 in)[1]
Position(s) Midfielder
Team information
Current team
Nice
Number 22
Youth career
2002–2005 FC Épinay-sous-Sénart
2005–2009 FC Épinay Athletico
2009–2011 Linas-Montlhéry
2011–2014 Guingamp
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2014–2016 Amiens B 22 (1)
2016–2018 Amiens 33 (2)
2017–2018Lyon (loan) 32 (0)
2018–2019 Lyon 34 (1)
2019–2024 Tottenham Hotspur 63 (6)
2022Lyon (loan) 11 (0)
2022–2023Napoli (loan) 30 (1)
2023–2024Galatasaray (loan) 19 (0)
2024– Nice 7 (1)
International career
2017–2018 France U21 11 (0)
2018–2021 France 7 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 17:15, 10 November 2024 (UTC)

Ndombele finished his youth career at Guingamp but was not offered a professional contract. He signed for Ligue 2 side Amiens, playing for the reserves until becoming a first-team regular in the 2015-16 season.[2]

Ahead of the 2016–17 season, he moved to Lyon as part of a loan deal. Ndombele was critical in the team's success and third-place finish that allowed the team's return to the UEFA Champions League. After another season at the club, Ndombele earned a move to Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur F.C. in a deal worth £62 million.[3]

At Tottenham, Ndombele's first seasons were unsuccessful, which saw him getting criticized for his work rate and dropped from the squad in 2021. Ndombele then went on several loan deals.[4] He won the Scudetto with Napoli and the Süper Lig with Galatasaray before signing for Nice permanently in 2024.[5][6]

Early life

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Tanguy Ndombele Alvaro[7] was born on (1996-12-28)28 December 1996[8] in Longjumeau, Essonne[8] to parents from DR Congo.[9] He holds both French and Congolese nationalities.[10]

Club career

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Early career

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As a child, Ndombele played at FC Épinay Athlético, a club based in Épinay-sous-Sénart, about 20 kilometres south-east of Paris, in Essonne. He then moved to Brittany when he was 14, in order to play for Guingamp, where he spent three seasons. He was not offered a professional contract at the end of his development. At 16, he made his senior debut, on 11 January 2014 with the reserves, by replacing Vital N'Simba near the final whistle.[citation needed]

He then signed for SC Amiens, who'd just been relegated from French Ligue 2 in June 2014; he took this as an opportunity to trial at numerous clubs (Auxerre, Caen, and Angers) but wasn't signed. The issue was that Ndombele was criticised for being "overweight"; this was the main reason that he wasn't signed by clubs, even though trialists were aware that he was a good playmaker.[citation needed]

Ndombele played two seasons in Championnat National 3 with the Amiens reserve team. He only played one game during the 2014–15 season, 8 November 2014, once again, coming on late in the match. He became a regular during the 2015–16 season, taking part in 18 matches. He started for the first time on 5 September 2015 at the age of 18 years and nine months.[citation needed]

Lyon

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On 31 August 2017, Ndombele moved to Lyon on a one-year loan. According to L'Équipe, Lyon paid €2 million for the loan. Lyon also secured an option to sign him permanently for €8 million, plus a possible €250,000 in bonuses and 20% of any profit made should he be transferred from Lyon to another club.[11]

Ndombele made his competitive debut for Lyon's first team in the 2–0 Ligue 1 away loss to Paris Saint-Germain on 17 September 2017; he started the match and was replaced by Christopher Martins in the 72nd minute.[12] On 15 February 2018, Ndombele scored a goal (his first career competitive goal for Lyon's first team) in the 46th minute of their 3–1 home win over Villarreal CF in the round of 32 first leg of the 2017–18 UEFA Europa League.[13]

His first season at Lyon was very successful as he provided great energy to the team while helping them get back to Champions League football for the next season as Lyon finished third behind PSG and Monaco. He became an indisputable starter for the team and was, alongside Ferland Mendy and Houssem Aouar, one of the great young players of his team. Few teams also showed interest for the French prodigy but Lyon made it clear that he won't be sold and won't return to his former club Amiens as Lyon paid the €8 million release clause to buy him.[citation needed]

The next season, Lyon signed him permanently as it was previously stated in the loan deal and his contract was extended until 2022 with the Gones. He started off the season well and for his first match in the UEFA Champions League against Manchester City at the City of Manchester Stadium, with a 2–1 away win, goals from Cornet and Fekir. He then scored his first Champions League goal against TSG 1899 Hoffenheim on 11 November 2018 (2–2 draw). He scored his first Ligue 1 goal against Nîmes on 24 May 2019 and Lyon eventually finished third in Ligue 1, behind Lille and PSG. His team was also eliminated by FC Barcelona in Champions League Round-of-16 (5–1 loss over the two legs) and finished the season trophy-less despite giving out great performances against superior teams (2–1 win against PSG, 2–1 win and 2–2 draw against Manchester City, 0–0 draw against Barcelona). Lyon's president Jean-Michel Aulas announced that he had received offers for Ndombele and that he might leave that summer.[14]

Tottenham Hotspur

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On 2 July 2019, Ndombele signed for Tottenham Hotspur in a club-record deal worth €62 million (£55.45 million) plus up to €10 million (£8.97 million) in add-ons, surpassing the previous transfer record set by Davinson Sánchez.[15] He made his debut in the 2019 International Champions Cup against Juventus. Within a minute of being substituted on and with his first touch in a Tottenham shirt, Ndombele assisted Lucas Moura.[16] Tottenham won the game 3–2.

On 10 August 2019, Ndombele made his Premier League debut for Tottenham and scored the first league goal for the club in the 2019–20 season, helping the team to come from behind to win 3–1 against Aston Villa.[17]

Due to his poor form, after a 1–1 draw with Burnley on 7 March 2020 Tottenham manager José Mourinho criticised Ndombele's performance and his perceived unprofessionalism saying "He's a player with great talent. He has to know he has to do much better and know I cannot keep giving him opportunities to play because the team is much more important."[18] He only played two further games that season, and his poor relationship with the manager led to widespread expectation he would leave in the summer,[19][20] but he stayed and the rift eventually healed.[21]

In the 2020–21 season, on 17 September 2020, Ndombele scored the late winner against Lokomotiv Plovdiv in the second qualifying round of the Europa League, sealing a 2–1 win that sent Tottenham to the next qualifying round.[22] In the Premier League game against Manchester United on 4 October, he scored his first Premier League goal of the season, starting a rout that ended in a 6–1 win, which is the biggest win for Tottenham at Old Trafford, and the best result against United since 1932.[23] His string of strong performances, in particular a 0–0 draw against Chelsea, in which he performed a skill move to get away from N'Golo Kanté and Thiago Silva,[24] led him to be considered by fans to be one of the most polarising midfielders in the Premier League that season.[25] These strong showings helped his team to stand at the top of the league in December.

On 17 January 2021, Ndombele scored when he flicked the ball while facing away from the goal, and scored from a tight angle with the ball landing at the far corner of Sheffield United's goal, capping a 3–1 win for Tottenham.[26] On 25 January 2021, Ndombele scored his first FA Cup goal in a 4–1 away win over Championship side Wycombe Wanderers in the Fourth round, eventually scoring a second in stoppage time to secure the victory.[27] In the final rounds of the season, due to poor fitness condition and injury, Ndombele was left out of the squad by interim manager Ryan Mason.[28]

At the end of the 2023–24 season, Tottenham confirmed the mutual termination of Ndombele's contract with the club.[29][30]

Loan moves

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On 31 January 2022, Lyon announced the return of Ndombele on a loan deal until the end of the season, with an option to buy the player for €65 million.[31][32]

On 18 August 2022, Ndombele was loaned to Napoli until the end of the season with an option to buy the player for €30 million.[33] On 4 September 2023, he joined Turkish Süper Lig side Galatasaray on loan with an option to buy for €15m.[34]

Following three unsuccessful loan spells during which none of the clubs chose to exercise the purchase option, his contract with Tottenham was mutually terminated, which would expire on 30 June 2024.[35]

Nice

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On 4 July 2024, Ndombele signed a two-year contract with French side Nice.[36][37]

International career

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On 11 October 2018, Ndombele made his senior France debut by coming on as a substitute for Paul Pogba in the 67th minute of the friendly match against Iceland at the Stade du Roudourou in Guingamp that ended in a 2–2 draw.[38]

Career statistics

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Club

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As of match played 10 November 2024[12]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup[a] League cup[b] Europe Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Amiens 2016–17 Ligue 2 30 2 0 0 1 0 31 2
2017–18 Ligue 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 3 0
Total 33 2 0 0 1 0 34 2
Lyon (loan) 2017–18 Ligue 1 32 0 4 0 1 0 10[c] 1 47 1
Lyon 2018–19 Ligue 1 34 1 5 0 2 0 8[d] 2 49 3
Total 66 1 9 0 3 0 18 3 96 4
Tottenham Hotspur 2019–20 Premier League 21 2 2 0 0 0 6[d] 0 29 2
2020–21 Premier League 33 3 2 2 2 0 9[c] 1 46 6
2021–22 Premier League 9 1 1 0 3 1 3[e] 0 16 2
Total 63 6 5 2 5 1 18 1 91 10
Lyon (loan) 2021–22 Ligue 1 11 0 4[c] 1 15 1
Napoli (loan) 2022–23 Serie A 30 1 1 0 9[d] 1 40 2
Galatasaray (loan) 2023–24 Süper Lig 19 0 2 0 5[f] 0 26 0
Nice 2024–25 Ligue 1 7 1 0 0 3[c] 0 10 1
Career total 229 11 16 2 9 1 57 6 311 20
  1. ^ Includes Coupe de France, FA Cup, Coppa Italia, Turkish Cup
  2. ^ Includes Coupe de la Ligue, EFL Cup
  3. ^ a b c d Appearances in UEFA Europa League
  4. ^ a b c Appearances in UEFA Champions League
  5. ^ Appearances in UEFA Europa Conference League
  6. ^ Four appearances in UEFA Champions League, one appearance in UEFA Europa League

International

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As of match played 28 March 2021[39]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
France 2018 4 0
2019 2 0
2020 0 0
2021 1 0
Total 7 0

Honours

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Tottenham Hotspur

Napoli

Galatasaray

Individual

References

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  1. ^ "Tanguy Ndombele: Overview". Premier League. Retrieved 29 August 2019.
  2. ^ "Tanguy Ndombele Profile – Net Worth, Background, Early Life, Family, Club, and International Career". OneFootball (in French). 21 November 2024. Retrieved 22 November 2024.
  3. ^ "Tanguy Ndombele: Tottenham sign France midfielder from Lyon". BBC Sport. 2 July 2019. Retrieved 22 November 2024.
  4. ^ "Spurs' record signing Ndombele seals Napoli loan". ESPN.com. 19 August 2022. Retrieved 22 November 2024.
  5. ^ "Tottenham release record signing Tanguy Ndombele". ESPN.com. 12 June 2024. Retrieved 22 November 2024.
  6. ^ Pitt-Brooke, Jack. "Tottenham terminate Tanguy Ndombele's contract". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 22 November 2024.
  7. ^ "Paris Saint-Germain 5–0 Olympique Lyonnais" (PDF) (in French). Ligue de Football Professionnel. p. 3. Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 June 2019.
  8. ^ a b "Tanguy Ndombele". L'Équipe (in French). Paris. Retrieved 13 June 2019.
  9. ^ Enyimo, Martin (3 August 2016). "Ligue 2 française : des RD-Congolais de souche titulaires en clubs en première journée | adiac-congo.com : toute l'actualité du Bassin du Congo". Accueil Adiac (in French). Retrieved 25 December 2016.
  10. ^ "TANGUY NDOMBELE –". unfp.org. Retrieved 5 August 2023.
  11. ^ Martin, R. (31 August 2017). "Tanguy Ndombélé signe à Lyon - Foot - Transferts". L'Équipe (in French). Retrieved 8 September 2017.
  12. ^ a b "T. Ndombèlé". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 6 September 2017.
  13. ^ "OL, OM fire as Nice get hat-tricked". Ligue de Football Professionnel. 15 February 2018. Archived from the original on 17 February 2018. Retrieved 15 February 2018.
  14. ^ Carter, Ben (20 May 2019). "Tanguy Ndombele: Lyon President Confirms 3 Offers Have Been Made Amid Man Utd & Man City Interest". 90min.com. Retrieved 19 August 2019.
  15. ^ Hytner, David (2 July 2019). "Tanguy Ndombele signs six-year Tottenham deal to seal £55m move". The Guardian. Retrieved 2 July 2019.
  16. ^ talkSPORT (21 July 2019). "Spurs fans need just one minute to make up minds about Ndombele". talkSPORT. Retrieved 22 July 2019.
  17. ^ Krishnan, Joe (10 August 2019). "Tottenham 3 Aston Villa 1: Tanguy Ndombele debut goal starts fightback as Harry Kane scores late brace". Evening Standard. Retrieved 10 August 2019.
  18. ^ "Tanguy Ndombele: Jose Mourinho slates Tottenham's record signing". BBC Sport. 7 March 2020. Retrieved 11 April 2020.
  19. ^ Jacob, Gary (29 April 2020). "Tanguy Ndombele likely to leave Tottenham this summer". The Times.
  20. ^ "Tanguy Ndombele facing Tottenham exit after telling Jose Mourinho he never wants to play for him again". Metro. 23 June 2020.
  21. ^ Davies, Matt (6 October 2020). "Tottenham star Tanguy Ndombele says Jose Mourinho relationship repairing after 'differences of opinion'". The Evening Standard.
  22. ^ "Tottenham vs. Lokomotiv Plovdiv". UEFA Europa League. 17 September 2020. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
  23. ^ "Manchester United 1–6 Tottenham Hotspur". BBC Sport.
  24. ^ "Ndombele's ridiculous skill against Chelsea looks even better in slow motion". GiveMeSport.
  25. ^ "Opinion:Why Ndombele is one of the nest midfielders in the league". Spurs Web.
  26. ^ Doyle, Tom (17 January 2021). "Tanguy Ndombele goal: Watch the Tottenham star's outrageous volley vs Sheffield United". Evening Standard.
  27. ^ "Wycombe Wanderers 1-4 Tottenham: Late goals secure victory for Spurs". BBC Sport. Retrieved 25 January 2020.
  28. ^ "Ndombele deemed not fit enough to play against Leicester in final game of season". Football London.
  29. ^ "Player update | Tanguy Ndombele". Tottenham Hotspur. 12 June 2024. Retrieved 12 June 2024.
  30. ^ Pitt-Brooke, Jack (12 June 2024). "Tottenham terminate Ndombele's contract". The Athletic. The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 12 June 2024.
  31. ^ "Tanguy Ndombele joins on loan through June 30, 2022". Olympique Lyonnais. 31 January 2022. Retrieved 31 January 2022.
  32. ^ "Lyon confirm Tanguy Ndombele loan signing". 90min.com. Retrieved 31 January 2022.
  33. ^ Smith, Cameron (19 August 2022). "Official: Unwanted Tottenham star Tanguy Ndombele joins Napoli on loan". www.footballtransfers.com. Retrieved 19 August 2022.
  34. ^ "Tanguy Ndombele Alvaro Galatasaray'da!" (in Turkish). Galatasaray S.K. 4 September 2023. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
  35. ^ "Player update | Tanguy Ndombele". Tottenham Hotspur. Retrieved 12 June 2024.
  36. ^ "Ndombele, première recrue du Gym" (in French). OGC Nice. 4 July 2024. Retrieved 4 July 2024.
  37. ^ Walker, Andrew (2 July 2024). "Tanguy Ndombele agrees two-year contract with Ligue 1 club". CaughtOffside. Retrieved 4 July 2024.
  38. ^ Crossan, D. (11 October 2018). "France recover to draw with Iceland" (in French). Ligue de Football Professionnel. Archived from the original on 12 October 2018. Retrieved 12 October 2018.
  39. ^ "Tanguy Ndombele". eu-football.info. Retrieved 12 October 2018.
  40. ^ McNulty, Phil (25 April 2021). "Manchester City 1–0 Tottenham Hotspur". BBC Sport. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  41. ^ "Napoli win Serie A for first time in 33 years". BBC Sport. 4 May 2023. Retrieved 4 May 2023.
  42. ^ "Trophées UNFP 2019 : Le palmarès complet" (in French). Ligue de Football Professionnel. 19 May 2019. Archived from the original on 29 May 2019. Retrieved 29 May 2019.
  43. ^ "UEFA Champions League Squad of the Season". UEFA. 2 June 2019. Retrieved 2 June 2019.
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