Spurs’ Ndombele joins Napoli on loan

Spurs midfielder Tanguy Ndombele has joined Serie A side Napoli on loan for the rest of the season, with an option to make the move permanent for £26 million next summer.

The out-of-favour Frenchman joined Tottenham in 2019 for a club record £55 million, but has struggled to make his mark in London after failing to impress the numerous managers that have arrived at the club in recent years.

Ndombele would have been hoping that Antonio Conte’s arrival at Spurs at the end of last year would have marked a fresh start for his career at the club, but in contrast found himself quickly shipped out on loan to previous club Lyon.

The 25-year-old was supposed to be the missing link in a Spurs side boasting ambitions of challenging for the Premier League title, but went on to make a total of 91 appearances and score just 10 goals.

He now makes the switch to join Serie A side Napoli, as the combative midfielder seeks to rediscover the form that saw him capture the eye of some of Europe’s biggest clubs.

Following completion of his medical, a Napoli club statement read: “Napoli announces that it has acquired the sporting performances of Tanguy Ndombele from Tottenham Hotspur on a temporary basis with the right of redemption (a permanent transfer).”

Ndombele has been a controversial figure both on and off the pitch during his relatively short-stinted Tottenham career, with previous managers including Jose Mourinho citing his laziness as a key problem.

Ndombele was classed as one of Europe’s brightest midfield prospects at the time of his move to the Premier League, but has fallen down the pecking order with a loan move away from Spurs highlighting a crossroads point in his career.

The summer arrival of Brighton midfielder Yves Bissouma meant that the writing was on the wall for Ndombele with Conte identifying him as one of a number of sellable players.

Alongside fellow outcasts Sergio Reguilon, Harry Winks and Giovani Lo Celso, Ndombele was also banished from first-team training by Conte at the start of the summer.

Napoli finished third in the Serie A standings last season as they qualified for the Champions League and have been keeping tabs on Ndombele all summer with him viewed as a possible replacement Fabian Ruiz who has caught the eye of PSG.