When Chelsea signed Moussa Sissoko from Newcastle United, it was seen as a high-risk move. The club was moving for an intense, energetic midfielder with an exceptional engine and not a shortage of technical prowess. However, much like his time in Newcastle – and Toulouse beforehand – Sissoko has been blighted with consistency issues. For all the talent that he brings to the table, Sissoko has often struggled with the week-to-week demands of top-level football. He might show up in a big game, then do nothing for weeks again – that has been the story of most of his career so far.
And that inconsistency looks set to finally cost him a place at the top of the sport. There is talk that Spurs will move on from the £30m in the summer, with manager Jose Mourinho and teammates equally exasperated of his lack of quality and consistency. It is likely to lead to quite a few changes at the club, too, with other signings – including compatriot Tanguy Ndombele – likely to make a summer exit from Spurs. The club looks set to blow it up and start again with a rebuild, with many of the veterans of the squad either past their peak or in a position where they could bring in additional transfer funds.
Sissoko has come under fire ever since he signed for Spurs, seen as a player who can impress but then fail to deliver when it matters most. He also has had issues with turning it on for games against ‘lesser’ opponents, often likely to do little in a game where Spurs need a bit more from their midfield. High wages and a high transfer fee, though, makes moving Sissoko on for any reasonable sum of money somewhat harder than expected.
Will Spurs give up on Sissoko in the summer?
It certainly looks like it. One former Spurs manager, Tim Sherwood, was clear that he felt the player was bringing nothing to the table at this moment in time. Asked about what he expected to see from Sissoko in the post-match loss to Brighton and Hove Albion, former Spurs coach Sherwood said: “You need creativity on that pitch now. The workman-like players around the midfield. Fullbacks who just want to stay at home. Davies on one side. Aurier played the other day and was a disgrace.
Sissoko on the right-hand side and giving us nothing going forward. Tottenham need to find a solution and Jose [Mourinho] needs to find it fast.”
Seen as the archetypical Mourinho player – an athletic and technically sound runner with the ball who can help out in both boxes and in-between – Sissoko has been a major letdown under the Portuguese coach. Seen as an excellent player for various reasons, especially with how he has performed for France in the past, there is little doubting his ability. For Sissoko, the most prominent questions revolve around his poor mentality and his inability to play well on a regular basis. It looks like it might cost him his position at Spurs.
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