Jose Mourinho reacts to Japhet Tanganga’s display in Spurs loss

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Jose Mourinho has told Tottenham Hotspur’s official website that he thought that Japhet Tanganga did very well in Spurs’ clash with Manchester City on Saturday.

Tanganga went into the clash having not played in the Premier League this season. So it was a surprise to see the youngster named in the starting lineup ahead of Matt Doherty.

It was a daunting task for the 21-year-old. He had to deal with the likes of Raheem Sterling and Phil Foden over the course of the evening.

Obviously, it proved to be a disappointing time for Spurs. But Tanganga was arguably one of Tottenham’s shining lights in their defeat.

And following the game, Mourinho suggested that he was happy with what he saw from the starlet upon his return to the side.

“Japhet did very well,” he told the club’s official website. “He’s a positive – a young guy, an academy guy, a club guy coming into the game and the game, of course, not easy.

“I didn’t feel that he had any problems and that he was in control against good players and a good team, and when the team is not physically well, then minute after minute, you start opening up spaces, not the same recoveries from the midfield players or the centre-backs.

“He had a few situations in the second half, but a complete performance from the kid.”

Just three Spurs players completed a greater number of successful passes than Tanganga, according to Whoscored.com. He also completed three successful dribbles and made two tackles.

If anyone staked a claim for more game-time, it may well have been Tanganga. Doherty has arguably not lived up to expectations since arriving in North London.

Meanwhile, while Serge Aurier has looked outstanding at times, he has also struggled to silence all of his doubters at various points this term.

Tanganga was a revelation at times last season. And based on his performance this weekend, it is surely fair to suggest that he will not need to wait as long for his next league appearance.