The return of Yves Bissouma - how Postecoglou is getting the best out of the Spurs midfielder

On Monday Tottenham Hotspur welcome Chelsea to a London derby that will feel slightly peculiar to fans of the club. Although the Spurs faithful always go into every clash with cross-city rivals hoping to take something from the game, the remarkable start to the new Premier League season under Ange Postecoglou has pushed expectations sky high. And against a Chelsea side that are languishing in mid-table, anything but all three points may be seen as a bit of a disappointment. 

Much has been made of this new-look Tottenham team, as Postecoglou has made the most of new signings such as James Maddison, while getting the best out of old, reliable stars like Heung-Min Son. However, what’s been just as impressive as Spurs’ goal scoring is their ability to defend their own goal. No club has conceded fewer goals from open play than the North London club and one player in particular that has played a large part in plugging the gaps in their own half is none other than midfielder Yves Bissouma. 

How much has Yves Bissouma improved under Ange Postecoglou?

Signed in the summer of 2022 from Brighton for no less than €29.2 million, Bissouma made his name with the Seagulls as an exceptional ball-winning midfielder. However, his first season at the club didn’t exactly go to plan, as previous Tottenham manager Antonio Conte largely overlooked the new signing in favour of other players. Coupled with a broken ankle in February, Bissouma made just 10 starts in the Premier League in the 2022/23 season and looked well off the standards he’d set at his previous club. 

However, with the arrival of Postecoglou came a fresh start for the midfielder and aside from a silly red card against Luton Town, the Malian international has been an ever-present member of the Tottenham team this season. That, unsurprisingly, has seen Bissouma begin to look back to his best. As the graph above shows, Bissouma’s tackles per 90 in the Premier League are more than twice what he averaged last season and better than anything he achieved at Brighton. Similarly, his interceptions per 90 have increased by 76% compared to last season and compare favourably to his Brighton stats, while his blocks per 90 at Spurs this time around are his best return in the Premier League to date. 

As such, there’s little doubt that the new Tottenham manager has had a huge impact on Bissouma’s game. And the player himself was happy to admit that in a recent interview. "We're very close, we're like a family. We work every day so hard and the manager is a really good manager and he gives to the players very good energy," he said to Kick Game. "I think in football if you have a really good manager and he's very close to his players, I think it's really important to be close with the players. For me, he's one of the best coaches I've had in my career."

How has Yves Bissouma’s market value changed since he joined Tottenham?

Naturally, Bissouma’s wavering form in North London has also had a big impact on his market value over the past 18 months. As we can see in the graphic above, Bissouma’s career-high market value of €35m was reached just prior to his move to Tottenham. However, that figure began to drop drastically after he struggled to break into Conte’s side and was then ruled out with a long-term injury. However, as we can see from the final entry, the midfielder’s market value shot back up to €30m in the most recent Transfermarkt market value update last month and if Bissouma can continue impressing for Postecoglou’s side then there’s little doubt that he’ll finish this season surpassing what he achieved at Brighton.