Ryan Sessegnon ‘fighting for his Tottenham career’ amid ‘100%’ Conte claim – pundit
Ryan Sessegnon is one of “a lot” of players “fighting for their Tottenham careers” under Antonio Conte, according to Noel Whelan.
The former Leeds striker, speaking exclusively to Football Insider, claimed the 21-year-old must use his premature substitution as motivation to perform better in a Spurs shirt.
Sessegnon was substituted after just 28 minutes with Tottenham already down by two goals in an eventual 2-0 home loss against Wolves on Sunday (13 February).
Rodrigo Bentancur replaced the youngster, who has made just five starts under Conte since his appointment in November.
Whelan insisted the Italian “won’t stand for anything less than 100 per cent” from his players.
“Every player can have a future under Conte if they put in the performances,” he told Football Insider‘s Ewan Kingsbury.
“He’s given everyone a chance to show him that they deserve to be at the football club. He won’t stand for anything less than 100 per cent.
“As soon as he spots something he doesn’t like, he’ll change it. Whether it’s five minutes or 20 minutes in.
“It’s a harsh learning curve for a player like Sessegnon, but he’s had his chances. Conte has got a strong personality and if you can’t match it – you’ll be out the door.
“There’s a lot of players who are fighting for their careers at Tottenham, and Ryan is one of them. Being subbed off like that would have hurt Sessegnon – but you’ve got to make every game count.
“He’s got to learn from it and use it to give him a bit more fire in the belly and inspiration – regardless of whether it was a tactical or performance-related change.”
Sessegnon was sent off inside 31 minutes against NS Mura earlier this season in his first start under Conte.
The loss against Wolves marked the third consecutive league defeat for Tottenham, who sit eighth in the Premier League.
In other news, Tottenham line up summer raid for defender as Conte plan revealed.