Apart from eventually winning promotion back to the Premier League, the greatest memory of Newcastle United's 2016-17 season will be selling Moussa Sissoko to Tottenham for £30 million. After acquiring him from Toulouse for next to nothing, Sissoko briefly impressed before playing a massive role in Newcastle’s relegation last season. His lone goal of the campaign didn’t arrive until April, a return of one from 37 matches.
An impressive European Championship, the riches of qualifying for the Champions League and the rush of blood to the head that accompanies transfer deadline day saw Tottenham overlook his distinct averageness and make him even with Erik Lamela as the club’s most expensive signing ever.
Half a year later, Sissoko has 16 EPL appearances with no goals. He appeared in four of Tottenham’s Champions League group games, all of which Tottenham failed to win, and did nothing.
Given a rare start in the Europa League on Thursday against Belgium’s KAA Gent, currently eighth in the Belgian First Division, Sissoko was hooked in the 70th minute, and Tottenham ultimately lost 1-0. The entire Tottenham team struggled, but Sissoko offered absolutely nothing. He's like an extra opponent out there.
Gent 1-0 Tottenham pic.twitter.com/H4kvI0ZGQR
— Ewan (@DeadlyGriezmann) February 16, 2017
Even his own manager, Mauricio Pochettino, recently said “he has failed to live up to expectations…you need to show on the training ground you are better than another teammate and you deserve to be involved.”
That’s as damning of a sentiment you’ll ever hear a manager publicly lay on their own player.
After watching them go scoreless in two of their Champions League group matches and score half of their goals in one meaningless match against CSKA Moscow, this Europa League performance shouldn’t come as a surprise.
But it's still shocking just how bad Tottenham and Sissoko have been in Europe this season.
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