Can Moussa Sissoko be a super sub for Tottenham?

Moussa Sissoko has taken a beating from Spurs fans during his Tottenham career. Is it possible for him to emerge as a valuable bench player?

Tottenham’s lack of spending this summer gave a lot of fringe players in Mauricio Pochettino’s squad a new lease on life. No one has taken more advantage of the opportunity than Moussa Sissoko.

The former French international has transformed himself from a player the club desperately wanted to offload this summer to a substitute who is currently vital to Pochettino’s team. The natural question is whether or not Sissoko can maintain this level of play for a full season.

For the record, he hasn’t been great this season. The standard set for his level of play was pretty low heading into the campaign. He has, however, been above average as an option off of Pochettino’s bench. Given all of the uncertainty surrounding Mousa Dembele and Victor Wanyama, that’s been an important development for Spurs.

When you watch Sissoko play it’s obvious what his strengths and weaknesses are. In the plus column is the fact that he’s an excellent athlete who is willing to work hard for his team. His combination of strength and speed allows him to overwhelm smaller, slower opponents.

The challenge is that he isn’t a very skilled player. His first touch is frequently the subject of derision on social media. For the most part, that negative commentary is pretty fair. Sissoko has been almost entirely unable to produce any quality in the final third during his Tottenham career.

Even so, he still has a chance to continue to be an important member of the squad. His athleticism gives Pochettino the option to play Sissoko anywhere in his midfield. He doesn’t fit neatly into the box of either defensive or attacking midfielder, but he’s capable of putting in a shift at either spot.

He might be the only player at Spurs capable of playing all five of those positions. That, in and of itself, means he has the ability to be a valuable member of the squad.

In the end, his place at Tottenham relies on two things. First, he must maintain his worth ethic at all times. If his work rate drops even the slightest bit, his effectiveness as a player falls off a cliff.

Secondly, his spot could shift dramatically based on what moves Spurs make this January. If the club do elect to purchase a high-priced defensive midfielder, they should be able to move ahead of Sissoko. The same can be said for any potential attacking midfield purchase.

Sissoko’s place at Tottenham is still in jeopardy, but he has the ability to carve out a meaningful role for the foreseeable future. That isn’t good news for some Spurs fans on social media, but it’s good for the club’s prospects on the pitch this season.