Prior to Euro 2016 Newcastle were reported to be asking for somewhere in the region of £20m – £25m for Moussa Sissoko. The player appeared to put in a series of good performances on the European stage, resulting in the new quoted asking price being in the region of £35m. This has only served to inflate an already massive ego and the Frenchman has taken every opportunity he can to declare his love and desire to play for a more ‘exclusive’ club. So far he has linked himself to Manchester United, Paris St.Germain, Real Madrid, Arsenal and one or two other clubs – without a hint of a bid having been made. The question is, is he really as good as he likes to believe – and is his price tag realistic?
The talent of the likes David Silva, Eden Hazard, Mezut Ozil and Aaron Ramsey is not in question – that’s why they ply their trade amongst the ‘established’ top 4. For that reason, with the talent that surrounds those players, it is unfair at this time to directly compare Sissoko to those players. However, there are several attacking midfielders of note currently with sides outside the established Top 4 that appear ready to make the step up to the ‘Big Time’. Players like Christian Eriksen of Tottenham Hotspur, Phillipe Coutinho of Liverpool, Gini Wijnaldum and Gylfi Sigurdsson of Swansea. Wijanaldum has recently been snapped up by Liverpool for £25m, but all of these players have failed to attract the interest of the world’s elite sides. If Sissoko can out-point these players in a direct comparison, then it’s fair to say he is the legitimate ‘next in line’ to make the step up to a truly ‘exclusive’ side – earning Newcastle the exclusive fee that goes with that type of signing.
As usual the players will be directly compared against each other in a number of fields. 10 points for 1st place, 7 points for 2nd, 5 points for 3rd, 3 points for 4th and zero points for 5th. The totls then get added up and we see who contributes more throughout the season, All of these players ply their trade from a similar position and all played approximately 3,000 minutes in the EPL last season, with the exception of Coutinho, who carried a couple of injuries and played only 2,000 minutes. He will lose a few points because of that. I considered bringing his averages up, but decided not to because part of a player’s value surely has to be actually being available throughout the season.
Fouls Committed:
How many times did these players gift the opposition possession? Coutinho only committed 9 fouls, Eriksen was 2nd with 13, 3rd goes to Wijnadulm with 16, Sigurdsson claims 4th with 25 and bringing up the rear is Sissoko with a staggering 50 fouls committed.
Fouls suffered:
Who won the most free kicks for their side? Gini Wijnaldum takes 10 points with 51, 7 points for Sissoko with 30, 5 points for Coutinho with 29, 3 points for Sigurdsson with 23 and zero points for Eriksen with 17.
% won – Aerial Duels:
Who gives extra influence in the air? Surprisingly Sissoko tops the charts with 48.15%. Next up is Wijnaldum with 36.76%, in third place is Eriksen with 35.42%, in 4th place is Sigurdsson with 13.33% and in last is Coutinho with 11.54%.
Successful Take-On’s – percentages:
Zero points for Sissoko this time with only 46.67%. In 4th place is Eriksen with 53.03%, in third is Sigurdsson with 54.55%, 2nd for Coutinho with 59.76% and top spot for Wijnaldum on 60.24%.
Pass Completion:
Bottom of the pile for Sissoko with 76%. First place for Wijnadlum on 85%, joint 3rd for Sigurdsson and Coutinho on 79% and 2nd place for Eriksen with 82%.
Key Passes:
This means goal scoring chances created for teammates. Wijnaldum only managed 43. Coutinho came in with 44, Sissoko chipped in with 49, Sigurdsson lined up 54 but Eriksen blew everybody out of the water with a mighty 101!
Assists:
As you might expect, Eriksen tops the chart again with 13. Sissoko claims 2nd spot with 7, joint 3rd place goes to Wijnaldum and Coutinho with 5 and last place falls to Sigurssdon with only 2.
Total Shots on target:
Who is getting into the right positions and testing the goalkeeper? Bottom for this one is Sissoko with only 17 for the season. He is way, way below everybody else on this vital stat. Wijnaldum managed 38 to earn himself 3 points. 5 points for Coutinho with 49 shots on target. 2nd spot for Sigurdsson with 50 and first place for Eriksen, who tested the goalkeeper 55 times.
Goals:
If you want to be considered a world class attacking midfielder, worthy of an exclusive club, then you need to show you can score a goal. Sissoko did just that last season. Literally. 1 goal. Eriksen takes 4th spot with 6. In third place is Coutinho with 8 goals, whilst Wijnaldum and Sigurdsson share the crown in this field with 11 goals each.
Total Points:
1st Place on 60 points: Gini Wijnaldum.
2nd Place on 55 points: Christian Eriksen.
3rd Place on 45 points: Phillipe Coutinho.
4th Place on 43 points: Gylfi Sigurdsson.
5th Place on 29 points: Moussa Sissoko.
I must admit, I’m shocked here. I knew Sissoko was not as good as he likes to think he is, but this is ridiculous! Sissoko is well adrift of the pack. On top of that, Wijnaldum absolutely battered him – and last season was Gini’s first in the Premier League. Sissoko does not score enough, is rubbish at taking players on (and having a positive outcome) and gives away way too many fouls. On the bright side, he can win a header and his assists record is not too bad. Is he an ‘exclusive’ player that deserves an ‘exclusive’ club? Is he heck.
Interestingly, trasnsfrmrkt.com valued Sissoko at a maximum of £12.75m when he was a Premier League player. Coutinho is valued at £29.75, Sigurdsson at £14.45m, Eriksen at £26.35and obviously Wijnaldum has just gone for £25m. I’d say that evaluation is about right for Sissoko, but if he’s in demand, then Newcastle are within their rights to demand a premium for his services. But 3 times his actual value? I don’t think so. If I were Real Madrid, PSG or Arsenal – I’d be looking to invest my 30 odd million pounds on a more capable player. More fool them if they let his big talk convince them he is some kind of special player – because the stats say otherwise.
Absolutely brilliant Shamrock mate. Explains everything we all saw from him.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Brilliant Sham, well put together, love these articles.
I said all along that Gini is by far the better player and that’s why he’s long gone. I never want to see that underperforming mercenary pull on a toon strip ever again. For them that say he’s better than what we currently have then read the above and weep. It’s also an insult to all the players that really wanna be with us and actually graft and care. He is not worth £35m, we are being ridiculously greedy and I would snap a clubs hand off if offered any thing above £15m frankly. Get rid cause he’s a toxic presence who will soon start effecting the squad.
Kimtoon(Quote)
Shamrock. As usual you have provided very interesting assessments. Personally I would take 12 million just to get rid of him as soon as possible. But as you say if NUFC can get more for him all the better.
Groucho(Quote)
These are his peers as well Shamrock. If you wanted to compare attacking midfielders in not the elite teams at a value of 15-30 million, then these are the ones. His peers, and the statistics you chose seem about right to me as well.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
The one thing that might not show up in the stats is that Sissoko scares the **** out of defenders when he runs at them and creates space for others. He has no end product and doesn’t score but he has that in his arsenal. Please take him Arsenal !!! 🙂 🙂 🙂
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Great stuff Sham.
I frickin love these stat attacks – never realised his stats were that bad though.
Also, because you finished the article in italics, all the comments are now in italics too 😆
Andy The Magpie(Quote)
Nope but undoubtedly someone would be daft enough to pay it on the back of a couple of his trademark 100 mph blind alley runs in the euros…
Hate the ***** get him gone & try again for Knockaert
CC(Quote)
I’m liking the italic print
Kimtoon(Quote)
Shamrock – I demand you take this article down immediately!!!!.
Are you trying to put those with more money than sense off buying this clown or what?!?!?! ?
Sharpy17(Quote)
Sham – It is a well written piece but I hope nobody is reading this who want to buy him…
Personally I think if Pogba is worth £100m and Gini is worth £25m then I think after Sissoko’s performances in the Euro’s then he’s worth £35m. He was one of France’s best players and showed what he is capable of. The money around in football now dictates that prices have gone sky high. Championship playwers are now going for over £10m regularly so for Sisssoko I would not let him go for less than £30m minimum.
Stuart79(Quote)
I appreciate every article that people take the time to write up. But these ones are my favourite for sure.
That really hits home just how terrible he was for us last season.
The surprising one for me was the ‘take-ons’ as you think of his powerful runs being one of his biggest strengths … clearly not!!.
Sharpy17(Quote)
He is on a par with Obertan in the headless chicken runs, but Oba had more heart.
Kimtoon(Quote)
Excellent again Shamrock! It looks at the moment nobody is remotely interested in the guy. Will Rafa get him rampaging down the left wing like last season. I have more faith in Aarons actually. He must be worth at least £40m 😀
Georgio(Quote)
Stu – I disagree mate. I don’t think Pogba is worth £100m (but I know you aren’t saying he is you are using it as a benchmark) but for me Gini would be valued higher than Sissoko. I know Gini wasn’t great last season & went missing on away games – but the stats above shows he still contributed more than Sissoko – and 11 goals to 1 is a big difference.
I know Sissoko had a good Euros, but for me that took his value up to £20m, coz I think after last season we’d have done well to get £15m IMO.
That’s not to say some mega rich club like PSG or Madrid won’t pay £35m and I’d snap their hands off for anything over £25m, but my valuation of him would be less than Gini personally speaking.
Sharpy17(Quote)
Then Gini in the scheme of things is worth more than £25m…
Stuart79(Quote)
Although having said that, Gini plays for an international side that couldn’t even make it to the worst Euros in history. I would also say that 4 of his goals came in 1 game. I think we did very well to get £25m for him and he will prove a **** signing for Liverpool imo.
Sissoko is a much better player than him when motivated.
Stuart79(Quote)
Agree, think we let him go cheap.
Kimtoon(Quote)
Stu, no way is Sissy better than Gini mate, not for me anyhow
Kimtoon(Quote)
The Chronicle @ChronicleNUFC · 27m
Potentially big transfer in @EFL. Derby fire starting gun in bidding war for #swfc striker Forestieri…
Looked a very good player when I watched them on sunday
Kimtoon(Quote)
I agree with Kim, technically Wini a far better player than Sissy . I was sorry we lost Wini whereas I would be overjoyed to get rid of Sissy.
Groucho(Quote)
Yeah – Gini would have been in my side ahead of Sissoko every time.
Sharpy17(Quote)
I’m disappointed at the lack of our transfer activity so far this week. Friday was a big slap in the face & I expected us to react a lot quicker than we seem to be.
Huge money spend in the PL in the last 24hrs!!!.
And Palace in for Benteke for round £30m I think.
Sharpy17(Quote)
Shamrock, simple answer no mate. Sissoko wants out so lets call some of these bigger club’s and see how much money there willing to pay for him. I do think his one of our better player’s on his day but he rarely turned up last season. One goal and no assist’s hardly make the champions league sides come calling. Big club’s like Arsenal don’t like sulker’s or player’s like Remy for example with a lack of respect for the club that actually payed his wages. Debuchy acted in a more professional manner. Cabaye also sulked but at least he earned his move to PSG. Okay he missed the Manchester game and the french manager told him no games, no national football.
Terry(Quote)
Good article sham
Stats show what we already know.
Inconsistent and a bottler who doesn’t score enough goals
I have no idea who we’ll sign up front but we need him asap. We need someone with pace and decent in the air
Gashley(Quote)
great write up Sham as per normal,its one of the reasons this is the best blog on the go second to none.
http://www.nufc.co.uk/articles/20160809/rafa-thanks-fans-behind-gallowgate-flags_2281670_5792602?
icedog(Quote)
Great articule sham , Reading that you would have too think we undervalued Wijnaldum .Personally would hope we take anything over 10 million just too get Sissoko out the club before this situation starts affecting the rest of the Squad .
Just been Reading in an articule that us and Southampton are after Luc Castignios a dutch striker playing in Germany for Frankfurt . I hope we stay Well clear outside the dutch eredivisie he is **** and even in the Eredivisie he is not that great .
Life is Black and White(Quote)
strange Pardew after Ashley Young has he not got enough wingers??
icedog(Quote)
icedog he must of already pardwed Townsend 😀
Life is Black and White(Quote)
Brilliant Shamrock. This is why nobody has come in with a huge bid for Sissoko. Will he sulk his way through the season if we can’t move him out though? I think there’s a strong possibility. The club will need to get clever here. Possibly a lower price (20M?) and a loan of a decent player? Is Charnley up to it?
GeordieTwo(Quote)
GeordieTwo i think their could be another problem apart from the high asking price. No team with a champions league place or teams with a real chance of winning something big want him and i dont see him signing for the likes of west Brom or a mid table team in italy ,Spain or Germany .we could be very Well stuck with the arrogant Tw@t and that could become a real problem inside the Squad . Lets face it who wants too play next too someone that does not want too be in the club .
Life is Black and White(Quote)
Spot on Lifie mate. That’s where the brilliant maneuvering needs to come from. The only person at the club that is capable of that is Rafa so get oot of the way Charnley. And I hope somebody (Rafa) has spoken with Ashley and explained what might have to happen (accept a lower bid with some add-ons).
GeordieTwo(Quote)
😆 😆 😆
icedog(Quote)
We dawdling over bids for strikers again. I hope Rafa has a plan. So much might depend on Mitro if we don’t get somebody in. Is he up to it or will he do his nut and get sent of repeatedly?
GeordieTwo(Quote)
Kimtoon(Quote)
Pardewed. verb. As in oh my god he’s been Pardewed already. Examples Ben Arfa, Sissoko, Yohan Gouffran etc. etc.
GeordieTwo(Quote)
Should read we’re dawdling. I thought we would go after a CB first and then a striker. It’s been clear for a whole season (the last one) that we needed somebody decent in his prime at that position. Look what it has cost us. Do we really want to risk not getting promoted for something like 15-20 million pounds? We made a huge mistake not going after McCormack until he was signed.
GeordieTwo(Quote)
So Everton signing Williams and Bolasie. They are definitely stronger now. Williams better than Stones imo. That’s another club not interested in Sissoko then.
Cheers for the comments all.
Shamrock(Quote)
agree 100% mate.imo theres no way hes worth 47 mil at this stage,couldnt even get in a poor England defence
icedog(Quote)
some crazy money doing the rounds, with all the EPL mid table clubs reinforcing there squads.
In the mean time the toon slip further and further down the ladder…
Munich Mag(Quote)
Bolasie is a far better player than Sissoko… Sissoko is a 25 mill player, the question is is there anyone out there who will spend the money on the flake ?
Munich Mag(Quote)
Hi Sham, red the H2H league, I can put a request on my Facebook if you like but I cannot guarantee the kind of people that would join… I have a few Mackem mates… Let me know if it will help…
Dubai Toon(Quote)
Dubai yeah that would be great mate. Shame not to run it this year and if Mackems want to join in the banter then why not?!
Shamrock(Quote)
Everton have bought well there like & I red they are close to signing Kone from the Scum as well – him with Williams will be a beast of a defence.
Surprised Everton haven’t been more active – thought their new owners who have spent to be honest.
They could loose Lukaku to Chelsea as well – but if i were them I’d be buying Bony off City & if Lukaku does go to Chelsea I’d be asking for Remy as part of the deal I reckon.
Sharpy17(Quote)
Really interesting article Sham, thanks for taking the time to write it up. His stats from last season were even worse than I thought. What I would say though is that lets not forget for the majority of the season he was being woefully mismanaged by McClaren and being played out of position out on the right or the left wing. I’m not sticking up for him too much because the way he has conducted himself this summer has been poor but I think when played in his proper position he is a very good player. Also if Bolasie is going for £30m then we should get at least that for Sissoko. Now that Pogba has gone I predict a flurry of transfers with Sissoko ending up at PSG.
SRF(Quote)
Ok, put a post onto my Fab page… Let’s see if it helps. As you say, be a shame not to run it.
Dubai Toon(Quote)
FB page not Fab page… **** predictive text…
Dubai Toon(Quote)
Cheers Dubai. You never know, might be a goer yet!
SRF yes I did think about the mismanagement thing, but then Gini came out top of the pops and not only was he working under the same set up, but it was his first season in the PL! So Sissoko can’t really use that excuse.
Shamrock(Quote)
Sham – you’re right there mate. Whilst SRF has a point about Sissoko being out on the right – the grinner had Gini out on the left for a large part of the season.
Sharpy17(Quote)
So it’s looking highly likely that Sissoko will still be a toon player when we face Huddesfield.
Would you play him? – if so, how would you line up?.
Sharpy17(Quote)
i dont think the players will want him in the first team mate,they want players in that will fight for the club,its a no go for me
icedog(Quote)
Definitely would not play him mate. Not until the window closes, he refocuses and apologises to his teammates (this wont happen because I think somebody will pick him up. Whether its PSG or Palace I dont know) Until then, he will continue hankering for a move and will unsettle the tem with half hearted performances. Plus, why play somebody that will shortly be leaving? We need to get a rhythm going amongst those players that will actually be here throughout the season.
Shamrock(Quote)
Yep I’m not disputing the fact that Gini had a much better season for us than Sissoko. I totally agree with that but in the last few games when Rafa played him centrally, he was like a different player. I still want him gone btw and think we should get a decent sum for him.
SRF(Quote)
I think he’s played his last game for us. I don’t think Rafa will play a player who clearly doesn’t want to be here.
SRF(Quote)
https://fantasy.premierleague.com
Code to join this league: 1225866-323734
Fantasy premier league dream team for the season kicks off in just a few days. We are trying to get a H2H league but only have 5 teams signed up. I know there are far more than 5 readers that spend a lot of time on the Internet, so why not sign up? It’s completely free! Takes only a few minutes to set up and provides a whole season’s worth of banter – so get in on it!
Shamrock(Quote)
By all accounts Sissoko is a popular member of the squad and that’s why Rafa made him captain. On that basis I would play him if he’s still here after the transfer window – although I doubt he will be.
How many games did Gini win us with his goals? How many games did he grab by the scruff of the neck? I’m not saying Sissoko did this either but when motivated he was and is clearly a very talented player. If Gini doesn’t score he doesn’t do anything. Liverpool will see this.
Sure I saw somewhere that Sissoko created more chances than anybody else in the team.
Stuart79(Quote)
Well done Shamrock. Keep up the good work
Sissoko is worth whatever we sell him for.
He’s as good as anyone we have in midfield
Heres an interesting Link
http://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/vorlagen/topvorlagengeber/statistik/2016/plus/0?saison_id=2015&art=alle&altersklasse=&yt0=Show
Apparently he is one of the top providers last season according to Transfermarkt
Premandup(Quote)
That chart is incorrect Prem. It has doubled his figures, including appearances. It’s saying he played 74 times in the PL, whereas everybody else on the list is in the mid 30’s.
Shamrock(Quote)
Prem – I’m sure there stats aren’t wrong, but I’m sure Koke & Eriksen would be in my team ahead of Sissoko every time.
Sharpy17(Quote)
Payet at 47 as well ?
Sharpy17(Quote)
seems like everywhere the toon is playing are sold out already EW in the last 15 minutes
Commercial sell out for Newcastle fixture Rotherham United is the latest one
icedog(Quote)
Newcastle providing a commercial boost to every club in the league by looks of it mate! Just need to start winning now.
Shamrock(Quote)
For 10 million I would keep Sissoko. For 20 million I would sell him. He does scare the **** out of other teams with his direct running and creates space for our other players. He has no end result though which is why he is only worth 10 mil.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
want him gone
Kimtoon(Quote)
me to mate
icedog(Quote)
we will mate no fear of that 😉
icedog(Quote)
We need cash to bring in a serious striker. Sell Sissy for something like 20 M plus a loan player of good quality. We’re too passive as far as making the big decisions are concerned. We wait too long and bid too low. We’ve brought in 8 players so far and several look decent but we’ve also lost some quality and we had no quality at all in certain positions. If we don’t act most of the pressure will be on Gayle and Mitro. I’m still not sure either will reach big numbers this season, although I’ve picked Mitro to be our top goal scorer.
GeordieTwo(Quote)
The six matches in a row beginning with Brighton on Aug. 27th and ending with Norwich on Sept. 28th will tell us where things are headed. By then we’ll have played 10 league games plus a cup tie and six in a row against decent opposition. If we don’t have at least 20 points by then we might be in trouble as far as promotion goes.
GeordieTwo(Quote)
G2, who do you consider a “serious striker”, more serious than Mitrovic, and how are you going to get him to sign for an average Championship club like the toon ?
Munich Mag(Quote)
really good news imo,Aarons agrees new five year deal,Rafa must rate him to give him a new contract now hope he stays fit
icedog(Quote)
Lee Ryder @lee_ryder · 26m26 minutes ago
Rolando Aarons likely to be the next youngster to sign long-term contract at #NUFC
Kimtoon(Quote)
Ice, yes brilliant news if he stays fit
Kimtoon(Quote)
I hope we will keep Aarons. Brilliant player.
Eric Sykes(Quote)
Yeah that’s great news about Aarons. I feared we might have lost him a one stage to be honest.
No question the kid has talent & he’d be in my team every week if he can stay fit.
Sharpy17(Quote)
Good question Munich mate. I think we still have the power to draw somebody decent (probably wishful thinking on my part). Somebody unhappy sitting on the bench somewhere. The deal would have to involve Sissoko going the other way and include some cash for us. We really should have done it already but wimped out with McCormack.
GeordieTwo(Quote)
Is it right that Burnley want Dummett???
Sharpy17(Quote)