Jamie Carragher and Steph Houghton told Monday Night Football on Sky Sports that Moussa Sissoko was ‘so fixated’ with Ruben Dias moments before Aymeric Laporte’s winner against Tottenham on Sunday.
Tottenham fans must be wondering how they managed to keep Manchester City at bay for 82 minutes in the League Cup final at Wembley because they were getting dragged all over the pitch.
Whilst Laporte’s winner was controversial because he should have been sent off in the first half, it was still a deserved League Cup triumph for Pep Guardiola’s men, who didn’t allow Spurs to lay a glove on them.
Both Carragher, and Manchester City women’s defender, Houghton, were scathing of Sissoko and how the £30 million man (BBC Sport) wasn’t even aware of what he was doing moments before Laporte’s winning goal.
“Sissoko, with the corner set-up, you have to be thinking ‘where is my man’,” said Houghton. “Dias or is it Laporte? He is so fixated with Dias, at this moment in time.”
Carragher asked: “Do you actually think he is aware of Laporte, Steph? We talk about him (Sissoko) getting across, does he actually know that he (Laporte) is there (behind him)?”
Houghton added: “I don’t think he does. I don’t think he looks. His body shape is too closed. He is too fixated with Dias and the ball. As the ball comes in, he’s trying to help Reguilon with Dias. But that’s not his player. You have come off the bench and you should know who you are marking.”
Carragher: “I think you are spot on. I don’t think it’s a case of Laporte getting across him. He (Sissoko) doesn’t even have any awareness that he (Laporte) is there. He (Sissoko) thinks he’s looking after Dias. He speaks to Reguilon and says ‘come and help me and get a little tighter’. He (Sissoko) never looks (at Laporte).
“Yes, Laporte gets in front of Sissoko. But look at every other Man City player – every Man City player (is ahead of the Tottenham players). They were on their toes to make that run across their man and one of them got lucky.”
It was a pretty worrying display from Spurs, who only had two efforts on goal, despite having Harry Kane be fit to start from the off.
The England captain might as well stayed in the treatment room and healed up because he would have got more service in there than he did on the Wembley pitch.
Either way, with Spurs sitting in seventh place, they will be looking over their shoulders and hoping that this already-disastrous season doesn’t get any worse.
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