Moussa: “I try to stay strong and give everything”

Football life has gone full circle for Moussa Sissoko, who has recovered from the personal despair of missing out on France’s World Cup squad - and therefore a winner’s medal - to play some of his best football at Spurs this season and in doing so, earn an international recall this week.

After another fine display in the 1-0 win at Palace, we planned to speak to the midfielder back at Hotspur Way this week.

We got there in the nick of time as on Monday afternoon, he was drafted back into ‘Les Bleus’ squad and flew out to Clairefontaine to prepare for matches against Holland and Uruguay.

Capped 53 times and a regular in France’s run to the final of Euro 2016, Moussa, 29, played in six of France’s World Cup qualifiers but didn’t make the squad for Russia. He was on standby.

He was back in pre-season training when Hugo Lloris lived the ultimate dream of lifting the World Cup trophy aloft after France’s win against Croatia in Moscow.

Moussa, who has already racked up 91 appearances in a Spurs shirt, promised to ‘follow my plan’ and he’s done just that, starting five-successive Premier League games for us for the first time as we continue to churn out the wins, nine in 12 so far to sit fourth in a super-competitive campaign.

Here’s what Moussa had to say…

You played six qualifiers for the World Cup but didn’t make the cut and then France won the tournament – what was that like?
Moussa: “To not be part of the squad was painful but in football, it’s like that. You have to accept it, even if it’s difficult. France won the World Cup, they did well and I was happy because I have a lot of friends in the squad and I’m French, so of course I was happy. Yes, it’s still a little painful in my heart. Of course, I wish I was there but I say again, this is football and I need to accept that even if it’s painful. Life still goes on. I need to look forward, that’s it.”

What has been your journey from the summer to where you are today, in such good form?
Moussa: “I wanted to follow my plan, to have a good pre-season with the team, try to be fit for the first game of the season and try to have a great season. I played the first game in Newcastle, but then I had an injury. I had a good recovery, came back strong and since that time I’m playing and doing well, like the team.”

You must be happy with how it’s going...
Moussa: “Yes, I’m happy and proud. It’s not been easy but I try to stay strong and try to give everything. At the moment I’m doing well so I’m happy about that. I need to keep going and trying to improve, because you can always improve and try to be better and better every game. We have a lot of objectives so I hope at the end of the season we all achieve them.”

You are also getting a lot of love from the fans...
Moussa: “Yes, I know and it’s very nice. I say ‘thanks’ to them. They give me a lot of energy. I hope it will be like this every game.”

What is it like to be part of this squad?
Moussa: “We have very good players, very good people. We all have very different personalities, the staff are great and I’m very happy to be part of it. We are all together, all going in the same direction.”

How did you keep going through the tougher times?
Moussa: “It’s simple. The job I’m doing is fantastic and when you look at all the tough things happening around the world...look, for me, sometimes I’m playing, sometimes I’m not playing and I might complain but if I look at my situation, I don’t need to complain, I just need to enjoy the moment because I’m doing one of the best jobs in the world. I know I have to do it properly because I know I’m a lucky guy.”