Hugo Lloris has urged Moussa Sissoko, Tottenham Hotspur’s £30m record signing, to seek clarity on his future or risk the chances of missing out on next summer’s World Cup. Sissoko enraged the Spurs manager, Mauricio Pochettino, at the end of May after revealing his unhappiness in north London to a French newspaper as well as detailing a falling out with the Argentinian.
The former Newcastle midfielder, who did not travel to the US on this pre-season tour because of a virus, made only eight starts after a move from St James’ Park and, with Didier Deschamps, France’s coach, eager to see the 27-year-old play more regularly, a decision needs to be made before the new season. The Turkish club Trabzonspor have inquired about a loan deal but Spurs are acutely aware they may have to take a financial hit for the player, whose £85,000 weekly wage may prove problematic for other interested parties.
Lloris, who has a vested interest in Sissoko for club and country, knows the situation needs to be addressed.
“Moussa is important for the French national team,” he said. “He needs to play, obviously, more than last season but then it’s a question of choices. It doesn’t belong to me. It belongs to him and we will see what will happen.”
The goalkeeper, speaking at a Friends of the High Line event in New York, stopped short of insisting the former Toulouse midfielder should remain at Tottenham and believes all options should be considered.
“It’s not an easy situation for him, for the team and for the manager,” he continued. “Obviously the manager would prefer to have him in the squad and involved in our USA tour but unfortunately he cannot be here. He’s preparing himself to be ready for the next weeks. But you know, Moussa is strong in his mind.
“I’ve played with him for a while and I’m not really worried. It’s true that last season was a bit frustrating for him and he’s got a lot to prove and then we’ll see what will happen in this period. Everything can happen but I know Moussa and he’s still committed to what we do.”
Sissoko, who was signed on deadline day last August, has struggled to hold down a regular starting spot under Pochettino, despite being the manager’s most expensive outlay. He completed 90 minutes only three times in a season where he failed to score.
“There’s a lot of competition in our team, in our squad. We have a lot of talented players, committed, ready to help the team – and then the gaffer will decide who will be in the starting XI,” Lloris said before Tuesday night’s friendly against Roma in New Jersey. “I arrived in the last day of the market [in 2012] and I remember it was not easy for me. But we don’t have a word to say as the player. It’s up to the club. We know the transfer market is not an easy period for players, for their minds, for their preparations, too, for their bodies.
“The most important thing is to try to be focused on yourself, try to make yourself fit and make sure your mind is ready, whatever will happen in your club or in your future club. That’s part of our job.”
Tottenham’s activity in the transfer market has been restricted this summer, with no incomings, while Kyle Walker moved to Manchester City for £50m. Manchester United remain interested in the England midfielder Eric Dier and, even though the Spurs chairman, Daniel Levy, is not interested in selling, Pochettino is aware of the need to add to his squad before the new campaign, with reports linking them with Hoffenheim’s right-back Jeremy Toljan.
“I trust my club. I trust my manager and the chairman. I don’t know what will happen for Tottenham in the next few weeks,” Lloris said. “I am looking around in Europe in the transfer market and although I am just thinking about Tottenham, I know the Premier League is getting harder every season. That’s why I love it.”
Finishing runners-up in the Premier League masked another disappointing European campaign for Tottenham, who exited the Champions League in the group stages before faring no better in the Europa League, with a last-32 defeat by Gent.
“It’s been five seasons now that I’m with Spurs and I’ve got a little bit frustrated about Europe,” Lloris said. “We’ve got the talent to go further than we’ve done. Hopefully this season we can prove our real value against the best teams in Europe and go as far as possible.”
