Japhet Tanganga

Last updated

Japhet Tanganga
Japhet Tanganga 12042025 (3).jpg
Tanganga in 2025
Personal information
Full name Japhet Manzambi Tanganga [1]
Date of birth (1999-03-31) 31 March 1999 (age 26) [2]
Place of birth Hackney, England
Height 6 ft 0 in (1.84 m) [3]
Position(s) Defender
Team information
Current team
Sheffield United
Number 2
Youth career
2009–2019 Tottenham Hotspur
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2019–2024 Tottenham Hotspur 27 (0)
2023–2024FC Augsburg (loan) 0 (0)
2024Millwall (loan) 18 (2)
2024–2025 Millwall 42 (2)
2025– Sheffield United 1 (0)
International career
2014–2015 England U16 3 (0)
2016 England U17 4 (0)
2016–2017 England U18 6 (0)
2017–2018 England U19 11 (1)
2017–2019 England U20 10 (0)
2021 England U21 2 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 12:20, 31 August 2025 (UTC)

Japhet Manzambi Tanganga (born 31 March 1999) is an English footballer who plays as a defender for EFL Championship club Sheffield United.

Contents

Early life

Tanganga was born in Hackney, Greater London, [4] to a Congolese family. [5] He attended Greig City Academy and joined the Tottenham Hotspur youth academy at the age of 10. [6]

Club career

Tottenham Hotspur

Tanganga with Tottenham Hotspur in 2020. Japhet Tanganga 2020.jpg
Tanganga with Tottenham Hotspur in 2020.

In June 2019, Tanganga extended his contract with Tottenham until 2020. [7] On 24 September 2019, he made his debut in the EFL Cup, in an away match to Colchester United. [8] Tanganga made his full Premier League debut on 11 January 2020, in a 1–0 home defeat against Liverpool. [9] Three days later he played the entire 90 minutes in an FA Cup replay against Middlesbrough, which Spurs won 2–1, and was named man of the match. [10]

On 27 July 2020, Tanganga signed a new contract with Tottenham, extending his contract until 2025. [11] However, he suffered from a series of injuries and, aside from a EFL Cup game against Chelsea in September, he did not play any games from March 2020 when League football was suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic until 26 November 2020, in a UEFA Europa League match against Ludogorets Razgrad. [12] [13] [14] Following his return, he made only a few appearances for the remainder of the season.

On 16 August 2021, Tanganga started Tottenham's first game of the 2021–22 season, and was named man of the match in a 1–0 victory against Manchester City. [15] In a September Premier League game away at Crystal Palace, he was sent off after receiving two yellow cards in quick succession while the score was 0–0. Tottenham eventually lost 3–0. [16]

Tanganga was ruled out for the remainder of the 2021–22 season after he suffered a knee injury on 24 January 2022 in a 2–0 loss to Chelsea. [17] He made 19 appearances that season, 11 of which were in the league.

Tanganga was released by Tottenham at the end of the 2023–24 season. [18] [19]

Loan to Augsburg

On 1 September, Tanganga joined Bundesliga club Augsburg on a season-long loan with an obligation to buy. [20] However, he did not make any appearances for Augsburg, sitting on the bench only once during his time there. [21] He returned to Tottenham in January 2024. [22]

Loan to Millwall

On 18 January 2024, Tanganga joined Millwall on loan until the end of the season. [23]

Millwall

On 10 July 2024, Tanganga joined Millwall on a permanent long-term contract. [24] He was named as the club's Player of the Year for the 2024–25. [25]

Sheffield United

On 28 August 2025, Tanganga joined fellow Championship club Sheffield United on a three-year deal for a significant undisclosed fee, [26] reported to be in the region of £7 million with up to a further £3 million in add-ons. [27]

International career

Tanganga has represented England at various youth levels at under-16, 17, 18, 19 and 20 teams. [6]

In 2014, Tanganga represented the England under-16 team against Scotland in the Victory Shield. [28] In 2017, he took part in the Toulon Tournament, coming on as a second-half substitute in the final as England defeated Ivory Coast to retain their title. [29]

Tanganga also played at the 2018 UEFA European Under-19 Championship and scored in their opening group game against Turkey. [30]

Although eligible to represent the Democratic Republic of Congo, Tanganga stated in May 2020 that he intended to pursue an international career with England, saying: "In life you have to have goals and one of my goals is to be capped at senior level for England". [31]

On 2 October 2020, Tanganga received his first call-up to the England Under-21 squad [32] but withdrew on 5 October 2020 due to injury. [13] [33] Tanganga eventually made his debut for the U21 side in the 2021 UEFA European Under-21 Championship, starting in a 2-0 group stage defeat to Portugal on 28 March 2021. [34]

Style of play

Tanganga is a versatile defender, comfortable both as a central defender and as a right back. He describes his approach as "aggressive," saying that "great players their talent can really hurt you. So my strategy is to make sure I get after him. Don't give him any time, don't give him the opportunity to get the head up and pass because he has the quality to do that." [35]

Career statistics

As of match played 16 August 2025
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
ClubSeasonLeague FA Cup EFL Cup EuropeOtherTotal
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Tottenham Hotspur U23 2017–18 [36] 2 [a] 020
2018–19 [37] 3 [a] 030
Total5050
Tottenham Hotspur 2019–20 [38] Premier League 6030101 [b] 0110
2020–21 [39] Premier League6020203 [c] 0130
2021–22 [40] Premier League11010403 [d] 0190
2022–23 [41] Premier League4020001 [b] 070
2023–24 [42] Premier League0000000000
Total270807080500
FC Augsburg (loan) 2023–24 [42] Bundesliga 00000000
Millwall (loan) 2023–24 [42] Championship 1820000182
Millwall 2024–25 [43] Championship4023000432
2025–26 [44] Championship20000020
Total60430000000634
Sheffield United 2025–26 [44] Championship0000000000
Career total8741107080501184
  1. 1 2 Appearances in EFL Trophy
  2. 1 2 Appearance in UEFA Champions League
  3. Appearances in UEFA Europa League
  4. Appearances in UEFA Europa Conference League

Honours

Tottenham Hotspur

England U20

Individual

References

  1. "Premier League clubs publish 2019/20 retained lists". Premier League. 26 June 2020. Retrieved 12 July 2020.
  2. "Japhet Tanganga: Overview". ESPN. Retrieved 12 July 2020.
  3. "Japhet Tanganga: Overview". Premier League. Retrieved 12 July 2020.
  4. "Japhet Tanganga". 11v11.com. AFS Enterprises. Retrieved 26 September 2019.
  5. Eccleshare, Charlie. "Mourinho's new boy Tanganga: an old-fashioned, pacy defender..." The Athletic.
  6. 1 2 "Japhet Tanganga profile". Tottenham Hotspur F.C. Retrieved 4 June 2018.
  7. "Player update". Tottenham Hotspur F.C. 7 June 2019. Retrieved 6 July 2019.
  8. Stanton, John (24 September 2019). "Colchester United 0 - 0 Tottenham Hotspur". BBC Sport. Retrieved 24 September 2019.
  9. McNulty, Phil (11 January 2020). "Tottenham Hotspur 0-1 Liverpool". BBC Sport. Retrieved 11 January 2020.
  10. Emons, Michael (15 January 2020). "Tottenham Hotspur 2-1 Middlesbrough, FA Cup third-round replay". BBC Sport. Retrieved 15 January 2020.
  11. "Next step, next challenge for Japhet". Tottenham Hotspur. Retrieved 27 July 2020.
  12. McGrath, Mike (15 June 2020). "Exclusive: Japhet Tanganga ruled out of Tottenham's restart with back injury". The Telegraph. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
  13. 1 2 Davies, Matt (5 October 2020). "Tottenham defender Japhet Tanganga withdraws from maiden England U21 squad with injury". The Evening Standard.
  14. "You don't have a chance': Ludogorets coach raves about Tottenham after 4-0 loss". HITC. 27 November 2020.
  15. "Tottenham 1-0 Man City: Heung-Min Son strike secures statement win for Spurs". Sky Sports. Retrieved 24 August 2021.
  16. Sutcliffe, Steve (11 September 2021). "Crystal Palace 3 – 0 Tottenham Hotspur". BBC Sport. Retrieved 12 September 2021.
  17. "Season over for Tottenham defender Japhet Tanganga after knee surgery". 18 March 2022.
  18. "Player update". Tottenham Hotspur. 5 June 2024. Retrieved 5 June 2024.
  19. Onyeagwara, Nnamdi (5 June 2024). "Tottenham confirm Sessegnon, Dier, Perisic and Tanganga departures". The Athletic . The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 5 June 2024.
  20. "Japhet Tanganga kommt auf Leihbasis zum FCA" [Japhet Tanganga comes to FCA on loan]. www.fcaugsburg.de (in German). 1 September 2023. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  21. "England - J. Tanganga - Profile with news, career statistics and history - Soccerway".
  22. "Tanganga returns from loan".
  23. "Millwall confirm Japhet Tanganga signing". www.millwallfc.co.uk. 18 January 2024. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  24. "Japhet Tanganga signs for Millwall". www.millwallfc.co.uk. 10 July 2024. Retrieved 10 July 2024.
  25. 1 2 "Japhet Tanganga wins 2024/25 MSC Player of the Year award". www.millwallfc.co.uk. 22 April 2025. Retrieved 26 April 2025.
  26. "Japhet arrives". www.sufc.co.uk. 28 August 2025. Retrieved 28 August 2025.
  27. Hall, Danny (28 August 2025). "Japhet Tanganga explains Sheffield United transfer decision as ex-Millwall man signs Blades deal". The Star. Retrieved 28 August 2025.
  28. Bradbury, Jamie (20 November 2014). "England U16s see off Scotland in Victory Shield encounter". The Football Association. Retrieved 22 September 2020.
  29. 1 2 "Spot on young Lions hold their nerve to retain Toulon tournament title". Football Association. 10 June 2017. Retrieved 22 September 2020.
  30. "England beat Turkey 3-2 in European Under-19 Championship opener". BBC Sport. 17 July 2018. Retrieved 22 September 2020.
  31. "Tottenham defender Japhet Tanganga sets his sights on England call-up when football resumes".
  32. "ENGLAND MU21S SQUAD TO FACE ANDORRA AND TURKEY NAMED". The Football Association. 2 October 2020. Retrieved 3 October 2020.
  33. "BRANDON WILLIAMS, RHYS WILLIAMS AND SAM SURRIDGE JOIN MU21S AS FOUR WITHDRAW". The Football Association. 5 October 2020. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  34. "YOUNG LIONS SUFFER SECOND CONSECUTIVE EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP DEFEAT AGAINST PORTUGAL". The Football Association. 28 March 2021. Retrieved 29 March 2021.
  35. Wallace, Sam (21 August 2021). "Japhet Tanganga interview: Spurs' homegrown star on his 'aggressive' approach and staying at the top". The Telegraph. ISSN   0307-1235 . Retrieved 24 August 2021.
  36. "Games played by Japhet Tanganga in 2017/2018". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 9 October 2019.
  37. "Games played by Japhet Tanganga in 2018/2019". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 9 October 2019.
  38. "Games played by Japhet Tanganga in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 15 August 2021.
  39. "Games played by Japhet Tanganga in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 15 August 2021.
  40. "Games played by Japhet Tanganga in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 15 August 2021.
  41. "Games played by Japhet Tanganga in 2022/2023". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 7 September 2022.
  42. 1 2 3 "Games played by Japhet Tanganga in 2023/2024". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  43. "Games played by Japhet Tanganga in 2024/2025". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 6 November 2024.
  44. 1 2 "Games played by Japhet Tanganga in 2025/2026". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 28 August 2025.
  45. McNulty, Phil (25 April 2021). "Manchester City 1–0 Tottenham Hotspur". BBC Sport. Retrieved 25 April 2021.