JAPHET Tanganga believes battling with Harry Kane on the training pitch and learning the game under big name managers at Tottenham Hotspur leaves him well-placed to make a big impact at Millwall.
The Lions secured one of the more eye-catching January deals in the Championship when they lured the Spurs defender to The Den on loan until the end of the season.
Tanganga boasts 50 Spurs appearances and European experience and played alongside world-class talent in north London.
Since signing, he came off the bench in the defeat at Queens Park Rangers before starting against Preston North End last Saturday.
The 24-year-old is now looking to become a fixture in Millwall’s team and get his career back on track. And he feels confident at being able to deal with the challenge after his experiences at Tottenham.
He told NewsAtDen: “You play against the best to match try and match yourself up and see if you’re able to deal with the best. And there’s things I’ve added to my game due to the way I’ve had to defend against Harry Kane and Son Heung-Min [in training] that I can bring into my footballing ability.
“Definitely it’s been very helpful for my growth working under great managers and playing with great players.”
Having played under Mauricio Pochettino, Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte – all of whom have managed both Chelsea and Tottenham – Tanganga has received advice from some of the most high-profile managers in football.
“How young I was working under these managers, I would almost have to be a fool to not take life lessons and football lessons from these guys,” Tanganga said. “They’ve worked with some of the best players in the world and for me to have that opportunity to try and gain some of that knowledge that they gave to some of those world-class players is amazing and I definitely took things from their time at Spurs.”
On Mourinho, the iconic former Manchester United and Real Madrid manager who was sacked at Roma last month, he added: “He’s a very nice guy and almost like a father sometimes with how he’ll come across. But he’s a very good person, looks after your wellbeing on and off the pitch. And he’s a really nice person and top guy even if it doesn’t seem like that.”
And on Pochettino, Tanganga said: “He’s a very good manager who is very keen on detail and character. A very good coach and person and someone who, if you had any issues, you could go and speak to. And he has great knowledge from the players he played with and managed. It was great when he handed me my debut in professional football [against Colchester United in the Carabao Cup in 2019] and I’ll forever remember that.”
For all of the positives he has had in his career, Tanganga has experienced a difficult year with limited football, injuries and a loan spell at German club Augsburg where he did not make a single appearance.
Looking back on the challenge, the defender said: “I think in football it’s a lot of things, it’s not just one thing. Obviously I came over there injured and they still took me on. The manager was sacked and the new one came in and he had his ideologies and he didn’t favour me in the team. But that’s not a problem, that’s how football goes. I was just keeping myself ready for when an opportunity arises for when I was able to be involved. Unfortunately, it didn’t.
“But I wanted to be ready and fit to maybe find somewhere else in January for an opportunity if it presented itself, which it did. Now I’m here at Millwall, involved in two games more than I did at Augsburg, which is progress.”
Despite many factors not going his way, Tanganga said he is always willing to reflect on the experience and learn from it.
He added: “You definitely have to look at yourself. Obviously coming in injured didn’t help but you have to look at yourself. Like could I have done more in training? Could I have pushed a bit more? Definitely I look at myself in that situation but it’s not just one thing. It’s a multitude of things of why it maybe didn’t work.
“I wasn’t playing but it was a nice to learn a new culture, learn a new language and Augsburg were very good to me in terms of how they treated me. It didn’t work out on the pitch but off the pitch, it was a great group of players, great staff and they made it really welcoming for me just as it has been at Millwall.”
Tanganga was convinced to come to The Den by Joe Edwards, who he has worked with previously in the England youth set-up.
Edwards’ pitch regarding what he wanted the Lions to become on the pitch “instantly sold” the Tottenham man.
“He showed me the style of play he wanted Millwall to go forward with and that’s the style I like to play in, so it instantly sold me and I knew this was the place for me to go for the next four-five months to play some football,” Tanganga said.
“Growing up at Tottenham that’s been a big part of the philosophy of playing with the ball and I’ve had managers who like that style as well.”
He is now looking to take the bull by the horns at Millwall and remind everyone of his abilities.
He said: “The boys have made me feel very welcome and I’ve been involved with two of the games and been part of the squad. I feel settled in.
“I think we just have to do as well as we can. We’re not far off the play-offs, it just takes consistency and making sure we take every game as it comes and try and win every single one. But definitely there’s still things to be aimed at this season.
“I think [I can go] wherever I see myself. It’s about how I apply myself and making sure I work hard and leaving the uncontrollables to God and see where he takes me.”