Brede Hangeland played with Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Mousa Dembele at Fulham.
Former Fulham and Crystal Palace defender Brede Hangeland included Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Mousa Dembele in his list of the laziest players he has ever played with, as the following post on BBC 5 live Sport’s official Twitter page shows.
Among the criteria was gym work, which is why Dembele was included in Hangeland’s list, as the former Norway international centre-back himself stated on The Friday Football Social show on BBC Radio 5 live last Friday evening (7pm, September 8, 2017).
The 36-year-old played with Dembele at Fulham, and he has made a potentially worrying claim about the Tottenham star.
While praising the Belgium international’s physique, Hangeland stated that the 30-year-old has a dodgy hip.
“He has got a dodgy hip as well,” said Hangeland about Dembele on The Friday Football Social show on BBC Radio 5 live last Friday evening (7pm, September 8, 2017).
“I think he was just being sensible in not doing the heavy lifting in the gym because he knew that if he did it, then something will happen, but he is a unit anyway, isn’t he? He is one of those people who are just born with a great physique.”
Should Tottenham fans be worried? Probably, as Dembele has suffered with injuries since his move from Fulham to Tottenham in the summer of 2012 for a transfer fee reported by The Daily Mail to be worth £15 million.
Dembele was able to start 24 Premier League games last season, while in 2015-16 he started 27 league fixtures and only 10 in 2014-15.
A report in The Times back in July claimed that Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettino is concerned that Dembele will struggle to play at the highest level beyond his early 30s.
“There are concerns at the club about Dembele’s longevity because he has been playing regular first-team football since the age of 19 in the most physically demanding area of the pitch,” added the report in The Times.
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