Tottenham Hotspur have been looking to dip into the market for a new defensive midfielder as Daniel Levy looks to bring in a new #6 in the current roster at Hotspur Way, and while many players have been linked and considered for a possible move to N17, Wilfred Ndidi has been an underrated prospect.
With Thomas Frank taking charge of the proceedings at Hotspur Way, the attention within the corridors has turned towards ensuring that the Dane head coach has players at his disposal who have the capacity to play within his framework. And this is where the long-serving midfield anchor at Leicester City comes into the picture, with the 27-year-old reportedly available to move for somewhere around £9 million following the Foxes relegation last season. Given the fee that Leicester are asking, it would definitely be a bargain considering the Premier League pedigree that Ndidi comes into the picture with. But the thing is, this is where the question comes up: is Ndidi a right fit for the North Londoners under Frank’s evolving system?
Why Ndidi makes sense for Tottenham?
We saw how Ange Postecoglou was experimenting with a few midfield combinations along the previous campaign, but let’s be honest, none of those have given the North Londoners that same elite ball-winning ability on a consistent basis that we have seen from Ndidi for years in the English top tier.
And if we think about how Thomas Frank operated at Brentford, the Dane head coach thrived with Christian Nørgaard at the base of midfield, where he was looking to get the better of opponents sequences by clean tackles complemented by how he was tasked to cover up the wide spaces when fullbacks advanced. Moreover, he gives you that tempo from deep, whilst Ndidi brings similar ball-winning instincts, despite stating the fact that the Nigerian international has less on-ball finesse.
But then when we start thinking about the defensive side of things, he has that tackling and intercepting ability which remains among the percentiles when compared with the best midfielder in England when he is fit. Moreover, he is still a dominant presence in aerial duels and ground coverage, showing his defensive instincts.
And the most important thing for me here is that price; if you get him at £9m, Ndidi is suddenly a budget-friendly addition which can help Tottenham spend on bringing in maybe an attacking talent like Morgan Gibbs-White or possibly invest in a striker to complement Dominic Solanke. So even if Ndidi doesn’t end up being a starter at Hotspur Way, he still has that experience to play for a side in the Champions League.
How will Ndidi tactically fit under Thomas Frank at Tottenham?
If Thomas Frank thinks about using a 4-3-3 or a 3-5-2 structure, then Ndidi will be tasked to play in that holding midfielder role in a pivot where he (very similar to Norgaard) is tasked to get the better of the opponents sequences while letting others like Maddison or Kulusevski carry the ball forward. But that being said, Frank likes to have a sense of press resistance and positional fluidity with the ball, especially in his midfield three, and this is where Ndidi would need to improve his on-ball play to thrive in a side that is looking to build from the back under pressure.
Possible problems that could hinder his progress at N17
The first thing that comes to my mind with Ndidi is his injury problems, given that he has been dealing with recurring knee and hamstring problems, and while Tottenham really need his tireless energy in the midfield, the North Londoners will have to worry about long-term reliability.
And as I mentioned above, when you play under Thomas Frank, you are expected to build through the thirds, and Ndidi has shown struggles under pressure in tight spaces and can be error-prone in possession, which, when you directly compare it with what Nørgaard was doing for the Dane head coach at Brentford, will be a notable downgrade given how the now Arsenal man has that passing range and tempo-setting ability with the ball.
Author Opinion
Ndidi is someone that comes at a cheap fee but that shows the ideal role that he should play in the current roster, which is a rotational role. And he is someone that Daniel Levy should be looking at as more of a squad stabiliser rather than a system-defining starter, and that is only how this signing could work, given it will give you smart depth, which can come in handy, especially with European top-tier football at N17.
