Mohamed Sissoko
 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Mohamed Lamine Sissoko | ||
| Height | 6 ft 2 in (1.89 m) | ||
| Position(s) | Defensive Midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Liverpool | ||
| Number | 22 | ||
| ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 20 April 2006 | |||
Mohamed Lamine Sissoko (born January 22, 1985 in Mont-Saint-Aignan, France), known as Mohamed Sissoko or Momo Sissoko, is a Malian football player who currently plays in England for Liverpool F.C.. Sissoko is a tough tackling defensive midfield player. He is often compared to Patrick Vieira due to similar high energy levels and a tendency to make hard tackles.
Player profile
Sissoko started his professional career in 2002 with AJ Auxerre in France, but failed to establish himself in the first team. After just one season, at the age of eighteen, he moved to Valencia CF in Spain. At this time Sissoko was considered a striker, but his new manager Rafael Benitez saw the potential for him to be converted into an energetic midfielder — the position he is now famous for playing.
Although born in France, Sissoko opted to play internationally for the country of his parents, Mali, after he was passed over by the French U19 International team, "I've no regrets opting for Mali, it's something I wanted to do and I am glad I did it, I'm very proud to be playing for Mali". He made his international debut on 19 November 2003 in a friendly game against Morocco.
Sissoko was a key part of the Malian team that reached the semi-finals of the 2004 African Cup of Nations, playing all five games and scoring one goal. Sissoko was also part of the Malian 2004 Olympic football team who exited in the quarter finals having finished top of Group A, but lost to Italy in the next round.
Sissoko courted controversy whilst still a Valencia player by taking time off, supposedly to compete in an international friendly game for Mali. It was later discovered that he had gone to see his father Mohamed, who was ill in hospital. Asked by a Spanish journalist upon his return how the international had gone, Sissoko claimed that, not only had Mali won, but he had scored the winning goal. The game never existed.
Liverpool F.C.
Sissoko moved from Valencia CF to Liverpool F.C. in the summer of 2005 for a fee reported to be €8m. He had been expected to sign for Liverpool's rivals Everton but ultimately plumped for the opportunity to work again with former Valencia boss, Rafael Benítez.
Sissoko is seen by some in the game as a future midfield star of European football. Liverpool manager, Rafael Benítez, showered praise upon him when he said Sissoko possessed "incredible ability for his age" and similar qualities to fellow Frenchman Patrick Vieira. His early career, like Vieira's, has been marked with disciplinary problems as he tends to pick up yellow cards for late or reckless tackles. However, his fierce competitiveness has been effective for Liverpool, and he is fast becoming a fan favourite.
There were fears for Sissoko's eyesight in his right eye after his retina was severely damaged after he was accidently kicked in the head by SL Benfica's Beto in the first leg of their Champions League knockout round tie in February 2006. Sissoko has made a recovery and returned in the 6th round of the FA Cup against Birmingham City where Liverpool won the game 0-7.
The 2006–07 season got off to a flying start for Sissoko with victory for Livepool in the FA Community Shield and Sissoko taking the man-of-the-match award.
Honours
Valencia
- 2003–04 Spanish Primera División
- 2003–04 UEFA Cup
- 2004–05 European Super Cup
Liverpool
- 2005–06 European Super Cup
- 2005–06 FA Cup
- 2006–07 FA Community Shield
Statistics
| Club | Season | Premiership | FA Cup | League Cup | Europe | Others | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| App | Goals | App | Goals | App | Goals | App | Goals | App | Goals | App | Goals | ||
| Liverpool FC | 2006-07 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 2005-06 | 26 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 45 | 0 | |
| Club | Season | Primera Div | Spanish Cup | --------- | Europe | Others | Total | ||||||
| App | Goals | App | Goals | App | Goals | App | Goals | App | Goals | App | Goals | ||
| Valencia CF | 2004-05 | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 29 | 0 |
| 2003-04 | 21 | 0 | 4 | 0 | - | - | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 34 | 1 | |
| Total | 72 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 26 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 111 | 1 | |