Moussa Sissoko’s time at Tottenham has been a fascinating one to cover as it perfectly showcases the ups and downs a player goes through in their career, all in the space of three years.
Arriving at Wembley very late in the 2016 transfer window, the midfielder struggled immensely at first despite having Premier League experience from his time at Newcastle, and it almost felt like Mauricio Pochettino didn’t want him around.
However, as time went on, Sissoko chipped away at his manager, and has now established himself as an important part of the Argentine’s plans, starting 22 games in the Premier League this season.
Back in the France squad off the back of his form after missing the World Cup, the 29-year-old sat down with Le Figaro ahead of the game against Iceland on Monday, and was asked what the most difficult part of his career so far has been.
He said: “My first two seasons at Tottenham. At Toulouse and Newcastle, I was playing every weekend, but not in London. I was on the bench, I came on at the end of games. It was hard mentally. That’s when you can break. The manager was expecting more from me and I understood.
“During that time, my entourage and family were important. I was on the phone with them daily. It’s in difficult times that you see if men are great, if they get up or not. These days, I’m happy about how things are going. I try and progress day by day, hoping to go higher and further. There’s still many good things to do. I’m not done.”
By that he means he still has ambitions, which include winning a World Cup and the Champions League.
With a few years left in his career and Didier Deschamps expected to remain at the helm for the foreseeable future, you never know, especially if he continues to feature and perform at club level.
