Former Tottenham Hotspur defender Ryan Sessegnon offered his verdict on every Spurs boss he played under – from Mauricio Pochettino all the way up to Ange Postecoglou.
Despite being snapped up from Fulham by Pochettino for a hefty £25million in 2019, injuries haunted the 24-year-old, limiting his appearances before he ultimately returned to the Cottagers. While reflecting on his spell in north London, which was also interspersed with a loan at Hoffenheim, Sessegnon offered insights into his relationship with the last five permanent managers at the club.
At present, Postecoglou is the latest Tottenham boss to enter an uncertain period off the back of his side's 1-0 away loss to Nottingham Forest. The Australian was the final manager Sessegnon worked with before his permanent return to Fulham.
Now he is away from the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Sessegnon gave his verdict on all of the managers he worked with at the club.
Mauricio Pochettino
Starting with the Argentine himself, who was captivated by Sessegnon's electric displays at Fulham and spurred the move to bring him on board. Fresh into the squad, an immediate injury meant Sessegnon faced isolation due to Pochettino's policy of keeping injured players away from the available players.
Sessegnon explained the sense of alienation in a chat with Rising Ballers, when he said: "I turned up to the club and I am not training, I'm in the physio room. At that time, not having too much contact with Pochettino and the team, because at that time, he did not want injured players to be in meetings and stuff like that. We were kept separate from that.
"Obviously, he welcomed me to the club and that kind of stuff, but I was not in and around the players at the time because I was injured. By the time I got fit, I went to England U21s camp in November 2019, that season, and when I came back, Poch had got sacked. I did not really have too much of a relationship with him, even though he brought me to the club, because I was never fit for him."
Jose Mourinho
When Jose Mourinho took the helm, it marked a significant uptick in Sessegnon's involvement with the Spurs first team. The versatile talent expressed his initial excitement about working under Mourinho when he said: "Mourinho was a very good manager.
"[He was] a good guy, very straightforward and honest guy. I remember at the time when he came in, everyone was buzzing. Everyone was sad that Poch had left, but bringing in a manager of his stature to the club, was very exciting for everyone around the club."
However, despite scoring in his debut against Bayern Munich, his opportunities were hampered by injuries once again. Mourinho would go on to loan him to Bundesliga side Hoffenheim.
Nuno Espirito Santo
Nuno Espirito Santo was regularly linked with Sessegnon when he was manager of Wolverhampton Wanderers. The dynamic Portuguese manager is known for favouring versatile full-backs who can make an impact at both ends of the pitch.
But despite a promising initial meeting firing up their rapport, Sessegnon's curse of injuries struck again. He added: "I came back to a new manager and it was Nuno Espirito Santo. He was a very good manager, he also wanted me when he was at Wolves so we had a good relationship straight away. When I came back to pre-season, I think it was the second or third session, I got injured.
"He did not really get to see me train or play or anything like that. It was frustrating, I really wanted to prove myself to this new coach. By the time I was ready to come back, he got sacked and he was gone. He got sacked in November and it was like that cycle from Poch to Mourinho. It was the same thing again."
Antonio Conte
Antonio Conte proved to be a turning point in Sessegnon's Spurs career. Under the guidance of the fiery Italian manager, he made an impressive 42 appearances – a stark difference from the mere 14 under the combined tenures of Postecoglou, Pochettino, Mourinho and Santo.
Looking back on his opening sessions with Conte, Sessegnon said: "He [Santo] went and then Conte came in. He was intense, in a good way. I loved him to be honest with you. He was a very good coach, honest and he helped me a lot.
"He just made us run. Tactically, he was one of the best coaches I have worked under."
Ange Postecoglou
Sessegnon's chances at Tottenham were cut short due to injuries and new signings when Postecoglou took over. Despite limited playtime under the Australian's reign, making only two appearances last season, the defender said: "When he [Conte] went, they brought in Ange Postecoglou.
"He is a very good coach, a very good guy. I've come back the following season, ready again. I've gone away, done my stuff, ready to go again. In pre-season, in one of the training sessions, I got injured again. That's how it kind of started with me under him.
"I think I was in training, I took a shot and I remember it was crazy, because we was doing this transition and I was playing right wing. I cut inside, shot, into the top corner, but because I felt something, I didn't care about the shot. When it happened, I knew the feeling of how it felt. I remember walking out of the session, going to the physio and that kind of stuff. I was devastated."
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