Antonio Conte’s latest comments look like very bad news for £25m Tottenham player – opinion

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Tottenham Hotspur boss Antonio Conte’s latest comments look like very bad news for Yves Bissouma – with the Spurs boss admitting he’s likely to stick with his current system for the time being.

Bissouma made the switch to north London from Brighton over the summer as he joined Spurs for a reported £25 million (BBC).

It hasn’t quite gone to plan for the 26-year-old so far as he’s had to bide his time for a chance to impress Conte. But the Mali international has put in some promising displays of late.

He was lauded for changing the game against Everton on Saturday after he was introduced for the injured Richarlison. Spurs went on to win the game 2-0 after he was brought on, following a goalless opening hour.

Bissouma has benefitted massively from playing in a midfield three, alongside first-choice midfielders Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Rodrigo Bentancur.

The former Brighton man started against his old club last weekend as Conte switched to a 3-5-2 system. Spurs looked more commanding with a midfield-three against the Seagulls and Frank Lampard’s men for over half an hour.

The same can be said about the 6-2 win over Leicester last month, as Spurs switched to this system as Heung-Min Son grabbed a hat-trick from the bench. But it seems that Conte is determined to stick with a three-man attack.

Conte comments bad news for Bissouma

Speaking to Football.London yesterday, Conte was asked if Lucas Moura is ready to play against United tomorrow night. But his answer was bad news for Bissouma.

“Lucas Moura can, yeah, be a possibility, [Bryan] Gil can be a possibility, [Ivan] Perisic like in a three like a striker is a possibility,” he said. 

“I have another training session to make the best decision. You know we like to play with a 3-4-3 with the three strikers and if we can’t change, I prefer to continue to play with the 3-4-3 otherwise we find a solution.

“I think we have the possibility to continue to play with the 3-4-3.”

Bissouma replaced Richarlison on Saturday but it seems that Conte is determined to stick with the 3-4-3 system.

And this will come at the expense of Bissouma, who’s behind Hojbjerg and Bentancur in the pecking order at this moment in time.

If Conte does stick with a two-man midfield regularly, then it’s likely that Bissouma will continue his role as a squad player for now.

It will be no surprise if the Italian names Bissouma among the substitutes once again tomorrow night at Old Trafford.