Ryan Sessegnon on how he’s adapting to life under Jose Mourinho at Tottenham
The 19-year-old has had to endure a difficult start to his Spurs career following his £25million summer move from Fulham
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Ryan Sessegnon admits he has been battling with himself as he tries to make an impact at Tottenham Hotspur.
The 19-year-old has had to endure a difficult start to his Spurs career following his £25million summer move from Fulham, where he became a teenage sensation known for his left-wing displays.
He first had to overcome a serious hamstring injury, then was sparingly used by former boss Mauricio Pochettino before being deployed at left-back by Jose Mourinho.
Sessegnon says life under the Portuguese has been a steep learning curve as he tries come to terms with life at a top club.
He produced one of his best performances of his short time at the club in the 3-2 FA Cup fourth-round win over Southampton and is ready to put the hard work in.
“To play under a coach like Mourinho is very tactical,” he said. “He doesn’t like to concede goals, so I’m trying to adjust my game in a defensive way as well. He wants me to be aggressive, so that’s what I’m trying to do.
“I think you have to work on it. Over the years I’ve worked on trying to better myself, working hard in training, analysing my game and stuff like that. It comes with experience of games and stuff.
“It’s been coming. Every time I go on the pitch I try to be positive and in recent weeks when I’ve had the chance it’s probably been a bit negative. When I came to Spurs, it was tough at the start but I’m starting to find my feet and the more games I play the more confident I am.”
Sessegnon did not play for Spurs until November, which was a far cry from his time at Fulham, where he was well on his way to 100 appearances by his 18th birthday.
“It was tough, really tough,” he admitted. “It was my first serious injury and to come to a big club like this, I was trying to find my feet. I came back in training and then I felt it again, so it was tough. Thankfully I’m now pain-free and enjoying my football.
“Coming to the game quite young, I was used to playing every game without any type of injuries. To come to a big club when I’m still young, still developing, still learning, to get an injury like that was mentally and physically tough.
“Thank God I’m pain free now and I just want to keep playing games.”
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments