The teenager has long been linked with a move to Tottenham Hotspur but has committed his future to his current club.
As reported by the London Evening Standard, Fulham left-back Ryan Sessegnon has agreed his first professional contract with Fulham, signing a deal that keeps him at Craven Cottage until the summer of 2020. But that is not necessarily bad news for long-term suitors Tottenham Hotspur.
While Spurs fans were desperate to see the electrifying 17-year-old arrive at their club this summer, his place in the starting line-up would not have been guaranteed given the players currently at Mauricio Pochettino’s disposal.
With Danny Rose and Ben Davies competing for a left-back spot, Sessegnon would have found that particular challenge all but impossible, while it would have been a risk starting a 17-year-old with no top flight experience on the wing week in, week out.
Sessegnon will know he has practically his entire footballing career ahead of him and he would have been foolish to leave Fulham to be a bit-part player elsewhere.
At Craven Cottage the teenager is one of the first names on the team sheet, and rightly so, however he will know the importance of developing his game before he makes the step up to the Premier League.
Such is his outstanding talent that Tottenham would have given him plenty of time to impress. Yet he would not have been an automatic first choice and while that would be acceptable for most 17-year-olds, Sessegnon is a cut above.
A new contract also means that if the full-back-cum-winger does ultimately leave Fulham, the Cottagers can command a higher transfer fee, and while that will not please his suitors it shows he is not a mercenary simply looking for a big pay day before he has fully justified it.
Sessegnon can beome one of the best wide players in Europe – he really is that good – but Tottenham fans should not look at his new contract and feel that is the end of their pursuit.
In a few years, perhaps when he has only just turned 20 and still has another decade at the top, Spurs may be in a position to offer him a guaranteed starting spot either at left-back or on the wing.
Much will depend on how Fulham fair in the interim, but if Sessegnon is still plying his trade in the Championship in a couple of years, expect Tottenham to come back with a vengeance.
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