Tanguy Ndombele faces an uncertain future at Tottenham Hotspur as Jose Mourinho and Daniel Levy disagree over his future, sources have confirmed to GIVEMESPORT.
The France international midfielder became the club’s record signing when he joined from Lyon last summer, with Spurs spending £53.8 million to bring him into the club.
However, he struggled throughout the 2019/20 season, with form and fitness issues derailing his progress.
Ndombele ended the season with just 12 Premier League starts to his name, and he did not complete the 90 minutes at all in 2020.
Under Jose Mourinho, he made only five starts, and sources close to both figures have informed GMS that there is disagreement within the club over how best to proceed with the 23-year-old.
Daniel Levy, the club’s chairman and a fan of Ndombele, is keen for him to remain at the club and he is desperate for him to become a success.
Manager Mourinho, though, believes that the relationship between himself and the midfielder is beyond repair, and would happily see him leave.
The former Chelsea boss has spoken about Ndombele in public, and criticised him in March following a 1-1 draw with Burnley.
He said: "I was expecting players who were not tired to give more to the team.
"Somebody has to realise this is the Premier League, this is a new experience and first time coming to Burnley. I hope next season he can be fantastic."
There is interest in Ndombele, with Inter Milan making an enquiry.
The two clubs are on good terms, with Spurs having sold Christian Eriksen to the Serie A giants in January, but sources within the club doubt Inter’s ability to afford the player.
Spurs also believe that Ndombele’s camp are attempting to engineer an exit, with briefings routinely handed out to foreign media outlets.
Mourinho, in particular, is frustrated by the amount of stories surrounding the player, and there is a desire at Spurs for him to knuckle down and force his way into the Portuguese’s plans.
Levy is understood to have informed Mourinho that he would be reticent to sanction Ndombele’s exit in this transfer window; he signed a deal until 2025 when he joined the club.
Meanwhile, the club are active in the summer transfer window and are close to securing the signing of Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg from Southampton.
The two clubs are currently negotiating the structure of Spurs’ payments for the Denmark international, who has set his heart on a move to north London.
The 25-year-old has agreed personal terms with Tottenham, and a fee of around £15 million will be spent on the midfielder.
Kyle Walker-Peters, the right-back who has spent the season on loan at St Mary’s, will move to Southampton permanently for £12m, though the two deals are separate.