Spurs winger signs in on loan
Burnley have signed 22-year-old French winger Georges-Kévin Nkoudou from Tottenham Hotspur for the remainder of the 2017/18 season.
Sean Dyche has certainly had a wide player on his shopping list for some time. There were strong suggestions that we were close to signing Aaron Lennon in the summer and the need became even greater at the beginning of last month when Robbie Brady was stretchered off at Leicester.
Nkoudou has been with Spurs since summer 2016 when he signed from Marseille where he’d been for just one year having previously played for Nantes. The fee was reported to be £11 million, a deal which also involved Cameron international Clinton Njie moving in the opposition direction, and he signed a five year deal with the North London club.
His Spurs debut came in September 2016 in a big 5-0 home win against Gillingham in the League Cup when he replaced Christian Eriksen on the hour. Three days later came his Premier League debut against Middlesbrough at the Riverside, again as a substitute for Eriksen but this time with the game virtually over.
He’s now made a total of 23 first team appearances for Spurs but with only three starts, one in each of the FA Cup, League Cup and Champions League.
Eight of his nine Premier League appearances came last season; the only time he’s been involved this season was in their 1-0 Wembley win against Bournemouth in October when he came on as an 89th minute substitute for Del Alli.
Having struggled to breakthrough in his first season, and then missed the start of this season due to a foot injury. On his return to training in September, Spurs’ boss Mauricio Pochettino was asked how he could become a first team player. “Try to work hard, try to perform as well during every single training session, be consistent,” Pochettino said. He did add that he felt the player had now settled in England.
On completing the signing, he said he had spoken to former Claret Kieran Trippier about the move. He said: “When I spoke with Trippier he told me good things about this club, about the players and everything about Burnley. I am happy to be here, so thank you Trippier. I think it’s a big opportunity to play my first minutes this season in the Premier League.
“Everyone is shocked because Burnley is just after the big six. They have played very well. I watched the last game against Liverpool when they played very well and were unlucky. That’s why I have come here, to find football.
“I knew he (Sean Dyche) is a big manager who likes young players and players who go forward, so it suits my character to come here and I am happy to work with him. I hope to help the club. If I can, I will, but the last word is with the manager. If he puts me on the pitch I will do everything to help the team go forward. I am ready to play and waiting on the starting blocks. If the manager puts me on the pitch I will do everything on the pitch.”
The pacy winger has been capped for France at all levels from under-16 to under-21, but he’ll now be concentrating on Burnley for the remainder of the season and, with us now having played Spurs twice, will be available for all the remaining games and he’ll wear the number 7 shirt.
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