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Moussa Sissoko

nayimfromthehalfwayline said:
As I said, Id expect that to be closer.

For me Alli hasnt performed near his best, unlike Sissoko, but has still been a vital (if understated) player this season.

Honestly I feel since the WC where he was excellent and through this season he will have grown a huge amount Could be set for a very big year next year.
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Indeed. Dele has once again done things for us others cannot. I think Sissoko allows him to be himself more and get into those positions. I would expect to see him ghosting Gilzean-like into the back-stick areas a lot on Wed. I think Ajax are very vulnerable there and if we can find a bit more quality in delivery, we will open them up in those areas behind the FB. Son’s movement will also help, ditto Moura.
 
Finney Is Back said:
I'm not sure that Liverpool 'ran out of steam and ideas'. They just didn't take the chances that they created and while the 3-0 result might indicate that Barcelona won with relative ease, I don't think the result was representative of the football on the night. I doubt teams ever have as many touches in the Barcelona penalty area as Liverpool had last night?

Of course in the end Barcelona could easily have had 4 or 5 goals with their late break-aways, but I think that came because Liverpool got more and more desperate for an away goal after Barcelona first went 2-0 up on the break and then 3-0 up via an incredible free-kick that no other player on the pitch could've scored, with Liverpool then starting to commit far too many men forward as they attacked. Had Liverpool got the equalising goal their play deserved at 1-0 down then I think they could and would have been more guarded from then on, becoming even more dangerous on the break themselves.
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I thought Liverpool were naive. Two-leg tie? Play to consolidate and take what you can. Effectively by allowing their emotional selves to get sucked in, they have lost the tie. I actually cannot believe they didn’t hold at 0-1!
 
thfcsteff said:
Indeed. Dele has once again done things for us others cannot. I think Sissoko allows him to be himself more and get into those positions. I would expect to see him ghosting Gilzean-like into the back-stick areas a lot on Wed. I think Ajax are very vulnerable there and if we can find a bit more quality in delivery, we will open them up in those areas behind the FB. Son’s movement will also help, ditto Moura.
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Lets hope you are right mate as i believe that is the perfect position for him, he is wasted and not the same player when he sits deep.
 
parklane1 said:
Lets hope you are right mate as i believe that is the perfect position for him, he is wasted and not the same player when he sits deep.
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He found that exact chance second-half but just couldn't generate enough with the header. It is a ball and area of the pitch I think they are soft in. Let's hope. I think it is well on mate...
 
thfcsteff said:
He found that exact chance second-half but just couldn't generate enough with the header. It is a ball and area of the pitch I think they are soft in. Let's hope. I think it is well on mate...
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I'd love to see some long range shots against their keeper too. I can't recall one in the home leg.
 
nayimfromthehalfwayline said:
This really is the crux of it. And I think how you look at this probably informs how you look at Sissoko.

IMHO this season has been all about making the most of a bad situation. And what Poch has achieved has been nothing short of miraculous.

I absolutely agree Poch has built the side around what Sissoko offers. But not because its the future, or even desirable, but because its all we have.

I dont think he wants the team to play this way. I dont think if given a blank slate he will draw a Sissoko shaped player as the key to his midfield.

I just think he has been given a set of constraints and this is the best he can do with it.

I would be utterly amazed if we went into next season playing a similar way and with Sissoko as the main man in midfield.
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I think this is being unfair, when Sissoko was signed Poch said it was because he needed a player who could break the lines and travel with the ball at speed with aggression particularly in transition and Sissoko for him fitted that bill so he must have had an idea that the team needed a player like that.
 
90291Spur said:
I'd love to see some long range shots against their keeper too. I can't recall one in the home leg.
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Agreed! Christian really should use those Brighton shooting boots. I have a growing feeling we are going to win over there. I really do.

I am also intrigued at the possibility we put Kane on the bench and have him warm-up every so often just to fudge with them. It's not like we have any other options his spot on the bench would take. as long as he is fit enough to jog along there touchline and look lively, it could be the greatest use of a tactical not-used sub ever in the CL.
 
I thought exactly the same thing!
Plus if we won 1-0 aet ,is there anyone you would rather see step up to take a penalty than even a half fit Kane ?
 
thfcsteff said:
Agreed! Christian really should use those Brighton shooting boots. I have a growing feeling we are going to win over there. I really do.

I am also intrigued at the possibility we put Kane on the bench and have him warm-up every so often just to fudge with them. It's not like we have any other options his spot on the bench would take. as long as he is fit enough to jog along there touchline and look lively, it could be the greatest use of a tactical not-used sub ever in the CL.
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Poch & The Mind Games. Great band name.
 
seaside spur said:
I thought exactly the same thing!
Plus if we won 1-0 aet ,is there anyone you would rather see step up to take a penalty than even a half fit Kane ?
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Not far after him would be Lamela. I think in our squad, he’s the one I’d rely on most after Kane in a shoot out.

Shame he’d pull a hamstring or do his hip taking it.
 
P.D. said:
I think this is being unfair, when Sissoko was signed Poch said it was because he needed a player who could break the lines and travel with the ball at speed with aggression particularly in transition and Sissoko for him fitted that bill so he must have had an idea that the team needed a player like that.
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Since when we have never played as we have this season. Which is much more simply explained by being due to the constraints we have than by being by a preferred design.

When we signed Sissoko is made no sense, and for the first two years it made no sense. And this season, the one where he is everyones savior, is the one where our squad is wrecked with injury throughout and we have to change tact to suit who we have available.

I dont think it is unfair at all to suggest that this season is one of compromise, and that the way Sissoko plays wouldnt be our preferred option.

Rather, Poch is making the best of a bad situation.
 
thfcsteff said:
I thought Liverpool were naive. Two-leg tie? Play to consolidate and take what you can. Effectively by allowing their emotional selves to get sucked in, they have lost the tie. I actually cannot believe they didn’t hold at 0-1!
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Context: If that Barca v Pool was a Spurs/Poch performance you would say that the away goal is vital, so we were 'brave' to go for it and had some great chances with Salah missing an open goal and Messi's freekick was just one of those things and we were right to 'go for it' as it is not good to go home without an away goal...
 
Bullet said:
Context: If that Barca v Pool was a Spurs/Poch performance you would say that the away goal is vital, so we were 'brave' to go for it and had some great chances with Salah missing an open goal and Messi's freekick was just one of those things and we were right to 'go for it' as it is not good to go home without an away goal...
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Bollox. Everyone knows that “being brave” is sitting on your hands and doing fudge all. ;)
 
tynesidespur said:
This article: https://statsbomb.com/2019/04/the-champions-league-underdog-bracket-preview-spurs-v-ajax/
adds some more context around Sissoko's role. I suspect your paragraph above is based on some of the content of that article. I draw some slightly different conclusions to the ones you make above.

You are basically suggesting Sissoko playing is to the detriment of the team and the main reason that our xG average has decreased. In fact the article suggests that Poch has recognised that we can no longer play a high-line and dominate midfield due to Dembele's departure (& to a lesser extent Dier's demise with injuries etc). Instead he has re-designed the team and Sissoko is a key component of that. He is vital in allowing us to progress the ball into the final 3rd and then allowing Dele/Eriksen/Son/Kane to work their triangles to create chances. Without him in there we are playing a mid-block but have less components to get the ball forwards quickly. The result is the sort of mis-mash performances we've seen over the last 10 days against Brighton, West Ham & Ajax.

Dier/Dembele was a superb partnership but Dembele was failing and we've had to make adjustments. You can't stand still in football and hark back to a time when you had the best midfield available. You have to work with the tools you have available and Poch has done that. I'm sorry but Sissoko is part of that and is a massive reason we've got into 3rd place and CL semi-final.
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It's not just that we're playing Sissoko, more that Sissoko is the polar opposite to Dembele in style. Dembele is perfectly suited to a possession game, Sissoko is, well, Sissoko.

Sissoko is vital to the way we're playing now but only because we've had to design our midfield around our only fit midfielder. That change in style has had a remarkable effect on our xG, both for and against, and our league spiral continues. We've not (I hope) designed the system around Sissoko because it's a good system, we've done so because it's our only option.

I don't think there was ever any intent to be playing the way we are - if so, Levy will have some tough decisions to make around Poch. I believe we're playing the way we are because Sissoko is our only fit midfielder and he can't play any other way.

As for Sissoko being vital in playing the ball into the final third, that's the definition of a deep progression. Something that the stats referenced show he really isn't at all good at. They also show that he doesn't do much at all for our pressing game - one of the key factors in us controlling matches in recent seasons.
 
So we have 4 senior central midfield players, Winks, Sissoko Dier and Wanyama. Of those 4 Winks is by far the most creative and the best passer, skills the other three for the most part lack.
If for argument sake all 4 were fit enough to start against Ajax on Wednesday for me it would be Winks and one of the other 3. And based on this season's form there has been a chasm between the performances of Sissoko and the other 2. So if you want to improve our midfield I would suggest you replace Dembele and then Wanyama and Dier before you turn on Sissoko.

For me it was close between Jan, Son and Sissoko but in the end I gave my player of the season vote to the later.
 
NaijaSpurs said:
So we have 4 senior central midfield players, Winks, Sissoko Dier and Wanyama. Of those 4 Winks is by far the most creative and the best passer, skills the other three for the most part lack.
If for argument sake all 4 were fit enough to start against Ajax on Wednesday for me it would be Winks and one of the other 3. And based on this season's form there has been a chasm between the performances of Sissoko and the other 2. So if you want to improve our midfield I would suggest you replace Dembele and then Wanyama and Dier before you turn on Sissoko.

For me it was close between Jan, Son and Sissoko but in the end I gave my player of the season vote to the later.
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Sissoko has only been playing because he's been fit. I'd replace him before any of our full backs too.

It just goes to show how fans allow emotion to control their thoughts that a very limited trier like Sissoko can even be considered in a team with Kane, Son, Moura, Eriksen, Alli, Lamela, Dier, Winks, Rose, Davies, Trippier, Aurier, Vertonghen, Alderweireld, Sanchez, Foyth, Lloris and Gazzaniga, who are all significantly better footballers than him.
 
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