There haven’t been many benefits to come out of the coronavirus lockdown, but Tottenham Hotspur might have one, with the news that Moussa Sissoko is fit and raring for action when the Premier League returns next week.
There is no disguising the fact that this has become a pretty disastrous campaign for Spurs, one which saw them part ways with Mauricio Pochettino earlier in it, and when football returns in England they will start the resumption down in eighth place in the top flight table.
So bad has the season been for Tottenham after the highs of reaching the Champions League final last term, it is difficult to find many positives from it, however one was definitely the form of Sissoko.
The Frenchman was a bright light in a struggling Spurs unit in the first half of the campaign, however he has not played since New Year’s Day due to injury, and the Londoners have got worse and worse without his presence.
The Tottenham midfield has been a topic of discussion for large spells of the season, but never more than when lockdown approached, when they were often overrun in the centre of the pitch, with the woeful performances of Tanguy Ndombele a particular source of criticism.
In order for his teams to be effective, Mourinho requires a powerful, forceful patroller of the centre of the park who can get up and down the pitch and Sissoko fits that mould perfectly, so his return could not be better timed.
Had the coronavirus not shut the sport down, the 30-year-old looked set to miss the remainder of the campaign, however the three-month stoppage has given the France international the time to recover and build his way back to fitness.
He is expected to be available when Tottenham get back into action in a crunch clash with Manchester United next Friday, and his return could just save their season.