Tottenham completed the signing of Yves Bissouma from Brighton earlier this summer for a fee of around £25 million.
The Mali defensive midfielder was outstanding for the Seagulls prior to his move to the London club but he will need to work harder in order to cement a starting berth at Spurs.
The club’s manager Antonio Conte has now issued a strong message for the tough-tackling midfielder urging him to work hard because he is currently behind the likes of Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Rodrigo Bentancur in the pecking order.
Bissouma has proven himself in the Premier League and there is no doubt that he has all the attributes to succeed at Spurs.
It remains to be seen whether he can win over the Spurs boss with his performances now. Bissouma will not only add presence and defensive steel to the Spurs midfield, he will also allow the attacking players to roam with more freedom and express themselves.
The 26-year-old has made just one start in the Premier League so far.
Conte said to Football London: “He needs to work, go totally into the idea of football.
“He’s a step behind Bentancur and Hojbjerg. The same for [Oliver] Skipp working with me all of last season. I’m pleased with what I’ve seen during the game and we’re talking about a player with good skills and who is strong physically with a good engine.”
He never looked like that at Brighton, maybe Potter is a better coach than Conte.
While Conte is the manager it HAS to be his way or the highway. A good player playing that player’s preferred style… won’t help the team if it doesn’t suite the team’s strategy and tactics. It’s very disappointing what Conte has said. It suggests that Bissouma has got real skill but perhaps not a good ‘team-work attitude’. A Spurs player with a bad attitude… my goodness never! You’d have thought the ‘Don’ would have specifically scouted out ‘attitude’ as part of his recruitment process. Perisic is an ‘old coot’ football wise… yet he’s slotted right into a LWB spot because he tries to do what Conte asks of him… and he ‘improves the team’
Me too.
Thought you were writing about Sessegnon there.
Thats about six of the first 11 then..ffs
It’s the way that Conte works, he demands that his players fully invest themselves in his methods. Fabregas basically refused to entertain it (arrogant pri*ck) when Conte arrived at Chavski so he got bombed out. He basically said no coach can tell me how to play football at this point in my career. Marvellous..
25m from Brighton to innit. If you walk past Harrods and head straight for Woolworths expecting to buy the same thing for a quarter of the price, you’re a pillock…
I assume Conte meant his idea of football.
The boy obviously has some idiots around him. Judging by the ‘uncle’ involved in his Brighton sexual assault nightmare. Not the brightest. He works hard or he goes. Up to him really and I’m inclined to give him a chance. Sounds like conte is too so, where’s your muzzle boy, you’re not heeling so well without it so we have to bring it back. Its for the best x
Deer in the headlights the other night, looked like a waste of £25m. Like a lot of spurs signings over the last few years he hasn’t hit the ground running. Perisic the only one who looks to have improved the 1st team this window. £150m well spent…