Ryan Sessegnon is in line to make a rare appearance for Tottenham Hotspur tonight.
Ryan Sessegnon has expressed his admiration for Ashley Cole after the Tottenham youngster was compared to him by his manager Jose Mourinho.
Whilst left-back Cole, who used to play for both Arsenal and Chelsea, was loathed by Spurs supporters, if Sessegnon, who has hardly been seen since his summer move, can produce 50% of what Cole achieved then he will have a very good career.
Sessegnon had only played 30 minutes of football since making the switch from Fulham in August, but his return from injury has come at the right time, as he is seemingly in line to feature against Bayern Munich tonight.
Ahead of that dead-rubber against the German giants, Sessegnon reacted to being compared to Cole, as he stated that he ‘definitely had an eye’ on the former England international when he was growing up.
“It’s flattering to be compared to someone like that, someone who I think is a great player and for someone like the manager to put my name in the same breath as Ashley Cole was big for me,” Sessegnon told Sky Sports.
“It does give a lot of belief and confidence for upcoming games and it makes me want to work even harder to get more.
“I definitely had an eye on Ashley Cole when I was growing up. I was an attacking full-back, very aggressive but can also go forward and supply goals, assists and he was definitely one of the players that I looked up to.”
There’s no doubt that Sessegnon is more attack-minded than Cole and has more of a goal threat to his game, as his record in the Championship proves that.
Whilst Sessegnon can play at left-back, he has also played as a left-winger, and in these coming seasons, it will be interesting to see what path Spurs decide to take him down.
Under Mourinho, he is working under a highly-rated and very experienced coach, so one thing is for sure, he is in safe hands.
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