West Bromwich Albion are reportedly weighing up a move for Tottenham Hotspur’s big failure from last season, Moussa Sissoko. Following his heroics in the 2016 Euro Cup, the winger has failed to make any kind of impression in the Premier League, whatsoever with Tottenham willing to dispose of him this summer, even if they have to incur a loss. Spurs want to let him leave for only £20 million this summer after getting him for £30 million from Newcastle United last summer.
Tony Pulis is eyeing one more addition in the attacking third this summer. The Welsh boss has always underrated attack and the Baggies’ scoring numbers reveal it well. They could score only 43 goals last season, mostly from set-pieces. However, that strategy surprisingly worked for the boss and West Brom managed a top half finish in the end.
However, targeting the next level would actually need them more attacking options up front and Pulis quite understandably has identified the strong Frenchman. The 27-year-old, who can play anywhere on the right flank as well as from the central midfield could be an interesting addition to the likes of Nacer Chadli and Matt Philips.
Sissoko was taken up by Spurs solely for his Euro Cup displays and his underwhelming performance at the White Hart Lane did bring a lot of criticism for the Argentine boss. He could register just two assists in all competitions throughout the season and failed to score any. However, Pulis believes that the winger could improve with regular time football at the Hawthorns.
Tottenham had a pretty much disastrous transfer season last year, as apart from the buy of Victor Wanyama from Southampton, both Vincent Janssen and Georges-Kevin Nkoudou failed big time in the attack. Reportedly, Spurs are also willing to offload Nkoudou this summer as they aim to clear up the wages.
West Brom have previously been a springboard for former Spurs player Chadli, who has rejuvenated himself at Hawthorns, and Pulis believes the same could happen to Sissoko. Following the departure of Darren Fletcher to Stoke City, Pulis could use Sissoko in the midfield. The 187cm is known for strength in aerial duels and dribbling abilities.
Even in his quiet tenure with the Spurs, Sissoko has shown some sparks of brilliance from the flanks through his brilliant outmuscling runs. However, despite all the hard work, Sissoko’s finishing remains a big concern. And for all of Pulis’ grand strategic defending, Sissoko isn’t a great tackler either.
However, the huge figure does excel in taking a lot of load and could be effective for the Baggies on the counter. And with a clinical finisher like Jay Rodriguez up front, Baggies could aim for a Europa League spot next season.
