Moussa Sissoko dramatically arrived at White Hart Lane on deadline day last summer, but has failed to make any kind of positive impression since his £30m transfer from Newcastle.
We all remember how Sissoko infamously switched off his phone as Everton tried to contact him about a potential medical ahead of a move to Goodison Park as he travelled to sign from Tottenham Hotspur. Daniel Levy had to fork out £30m, a club record, for Sissoko, and Spurs fans would have been expecting much better performances than they have seen to date.
The Frenchman now regularly finds himself on the bench for Mauricio Pochettino’s side, and apart from one half-decent performance down the right against Manchester United, Sissoko has failed to have any kind of impact since his deadline day arrival. The former Newcastle man is limited to appearances off the bench for Spurs, and now has a new theory as to why he has failed to hit the heights expected of him at White Hart Lane.
Speaking to beIN Sports recently, Sissoko claimed that he has failed to hit top form in North London due to the fact that he is “trying to learn because I have to get used to a new style of playing in a new team”.
Spurs fans let out a collective groan earlier on this afternoon when in the same interview Sissoko said “my future is at Tottenham and I’m trying to give my best”. This was said in light of recent reports linking the Frenchman with a move to Italy.
Should we be surprised that Sissoko hasn’t succeeded at Tottenham?
No, not really. All this transfer, and Sissoko’s inability to succeed at White Hart Lane, shows is how much a player’s value can rocket to astronomical levels just after a few good displays at the European Championships. The fact of the matter is that Sissoko was poor at best for Newcastle for the whole of last season, and failed steer them clear from the drop, or do anything at all in fact to help the cause.
I saw the £30m deadline day move for Sissoko as nothing more than a panic buy back in September, and nothing has changed since then. The Frenchman’s work ethic has never been excellent, and we should not be surprised that Sissoko has failed to find many first team opportunities at a club with a manager that hands of chances in the team based on hard work and good work ethic in training.
