Tottenham Hotspur boss Thomas Frank has axed Yves Bissouma from his UEFA Super Cup squad to face Paris Saint-Germain after the midfielder turned up late to team duties one too many times.
Speaking ahead of Wednesday’s final in Udine, Frank confirmed Bissouma’s omission from the Tottenham team sheet was a disciplinary measure.
“He has been late several times, and now this latest time was one too many,” Frank said as Tottenham prepare to take on the UEFA Champions League winners.
“You give players love, but you also have demands. There need to be consequences, and this time there was a consequence for that.”
Frank added he would follow up on the matter after the match, but insisted his focus was on the clash with PSG.
It’s the latest setback in a turbulent Spurs career for the Mali international, who arrived from Brighton & Hove Albion in 2022.
Bissouma was banned for the opening game of last season after being filmed appearing to inhale nitrous oxide.
Former Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou also questioned his influence in March, accusing him of letting games drift by after substituting him at half-time in a loss to Fulham.
While Bissouma started the Europa League final win over Manchester United and delivered the goods for Tottenham, but his contract expires next summer, and competition for places is fierce.
The loan signing of Joao Palhinha from Bayern Munich has pushed him further down the pecking order, and this latest indiscretion will do little to aid his case for an extension.
With Palhinha, Lucas Bergvall, Rodrigo Bentancur, Pape Sarr and Archie Gray available, Frank has no shortage of talented and focused midfield options for the showdown in Italy.
Given his patchy form, lapses in discipline, and the fact that his contract runs down next summer, Spurs should see this as the perfect moment to move Bissouma, who earns £55,000 per week, on.
Turning up late under a new manager signals a player who is not fully committed to the project. Tottenham have both the depth and the quality to cope without him.
Holding onto a distracted, depreciating asset makes little sense.
The time has come for Spurs to cash in, reinvest in the squad, and ensure every player matches Frank’s demands for professionalism.