‘Exactly what Conte wants’: BBC pundit says Tottenham man completely changed how the team played yesterday

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Tottenham Hotspur continued their impressive start to the season with a 2-0 win against Everton.

Speaking on BBC Match of the Day, Jermaine Jenas was very impressed by the impact of Yves Bissouma.

The Malian international was brought on as a substitute for Richarlison after the Brazilian picked up an injury.

The game was still hanging in the balance at 0-0 before Bissouma was brought on.

The midfielder forced a change in how Tottenham played, and it certainly benefited Antonio Conte’s side.

Harry Kane opened the scoring from the penalty spot minutes after Bissouma’s introduction.

The 26-year-old’s midfielder partner Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg made certain of all three points in the closing stages.

It was Bissouma’s introduction that allowed the Dane and Rodrigo Bentancur to play further up the pitch.

Bissouma changed Tottenham’s style of play

Speaking on Match of the Day (15/10 10:40pm) after the game finished, Jenas was impressed by the impact Bissouma made.

“There was a definite change in the way Tottenham played when Bissouma came onto the pitch,” Jenas said.

“And what I liked about it straight away was, he’s in that deeper role but Bentancur and Hojbjerg then go a little bit higher and occupy the other two Everton midfielders.

“This then frees up Son if he wants to drop in deep, because usually when they’re dropping deep they’re just running into midfield players.

“But that extra body, it created more movement for Tottenham and it gave more space to Harry Kane and Son to operate in.

“This element of his game (as he dispossesses Demarai Gray) that bite, that snap in his midfield and playing forward.

“He’s constantly talking about him understanding the position more, and it’s little snippets like this (blocking a Gray dribble) that tell me that’s exactly what Conte wants.

“And I just think, Richarlison injured, the games are coming thick and fast, it’s a good time to have him in the side.”

Bissouma hasn’t made the immediate impact some would have expected him to since arriving from Brighton.

He’s only made two league starts, and has played less than 300 minutes of football in the Premier League.

Bissouma’s had some injury concerns this season, and reportedly told staff he wasn’t fit to start against Arsenal the day before the match.

He’s already picked up three bookings in this campaign, and was criticised for an unnecessary challenge last weekend.

However, with Richarlison now injured, it could entice Conte to play the Malian in midfield in their next fixture.

Bissouma completely changed the way Tottenham played for the better yesterday.

He could have just convinced his manager to start him against Manchester United on Wednesday.