The midfielder was widely considered a flop during his first two seasons at Tottenham but put in a superb performance in Saturday’s 3-1 win over Chelsea.
Moussa Sissoko has come a long way over the past few months at Tottenham Hotspur.
The France international joined Spurs on transfer deadline day in the summer of 2016 for a reported £30 million, but he initially struggled to impress in north London.
For two seasons, Sissoko was widely considered a flop at Tottenham and came under a lot of criticism from sections of the fanbase, which led to an interview with the Daily Mail in the summer in which he opened up on his early struggles.
This term, however, he has vastly improved, playing a key role in his club’s great early-season form.
The 29-year-old was often linked with moves away but Mauricio Pochettino stuck by him and the Argentine is now reaping the benefits of the pacey, combative midfielder.
Sissoko was especially outstanding against Chelsea on Saturday, winning numerous tackles and making effective passes as Spurs ran out 3-1 winners against the Blues.
According to WhoScored, Sissoko had a pass accuracy of 82.4%, won two headers, made four tackles and one interception, and played one key pass against Chelsea.
Speaking to the Evening Standard, Spurs left-back Ben Davies claimed that the squad never doubted Sissoko’s quality, but suggested that the Frenchman was impacted by the criticism, doing well to “come back” from the flak.
“I thought he was excellent against Chelsea,” said Davies. “He’s really showing the quality he’s got, but we never had any doubts about what he can bring to this team.
“He got a bit of flak, sometimes unfairly, and he became a scapegoat when we didn’t perform at our best. But I thought on Saturday, and during this entire season, he’s been excellent, so we’re delighted for him. If you can come back from that, you can do anything.”
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
