Jose Mourinho must go berserk on Moussa Sissoko after the Tottenham Hotspur midfielder’s struggles in Sunday’s draw with Chelsea.
Sissoko opened the battle at Stamford Bridge alongside Spurs’ summer signing Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg as the north London outfit strove to regain the top spot in the Premier League, after Liverpool’s draw with Brighton and Hove Albion saw Jurgen Klopp’s title-holders move ahead on Saturday.
Chelsea failing to turn home any of their 13 shots, with just three finding the target, proved enough for Mourinho this weekend, with goal difference keeping Spurs first in the division after 10 games thanks to the league’s best defensive record.
Sissoko recently revealed Mourinho’s arrival in north London to succeed Mauricio Pochettino at the helm a year ago left the Frenchman in a state of trepidation, unsure of what impact the Portuguese’s appointment would have on his future at the club.
“[I was] a little anxious because you don’t know [him] and he is a strong man with a lot of character, you don’t know exactly what you will get,” Sissoko told the Evening Standard. “Of course, you know you will get a good manager with a lot of experience but, when it comes to relationships, you are a little bit scared!”
Thoughts have since turned, with Sissoko adding: “He’s been really good with everyone. It’s not just with the players, it’s everyone in the building. He can be very sociable, talking and laughing with all the players. We are enjoying everything we are doing with him.”
But Mourinho must go berserk on Sissoko following his involvement in Sunday’s draw with Chelsea, as the £80,000-per-week midfield enforcer failed to provide the impact his contract warrants.
Sissoko has been a regular aspect of Mourinho’s plans since being appointed as Pochettino’s replacement, with the 31-year-old now starting eight of his nine Premier League appearances this season after 17 outings last term.
Sissoko badly let Mourinho down on his latest return to Stamford Bridge, with the Portuguese tactician seeing fewer touches (36) from the 65-cap France international than all Tottenham players who started bar 65th-minute substitute Steven Bergwijn (34) – even goalkeeper Hugo Lloris (42) saw more of the ball, per WhoScored.
The midfielder, signed in 2016 for £30m, further struggled with a team-low 20 accurate passes – excluding second-half additions Giovani Lo Celso (10), Ben Davies (0) and Lucas Moura (1) – while not attempting a single dribble, attempting just one aerial duel, being dribbled past once and failing to take possession with his only tackle of the game.
Mourinho would struggle to find any positives from Sissoko’s performance, having lost two of his four duels and possession 11 times, per SofaScore, and may now question the former Newcastle United man’s role in his starting line-up.
AND in other news, Gary Mabbutt has exclusively told Football FanCast what Jose Mourinho did “a lot of” at Tottenham.