Mauricio Pochettino urges £30m Moussa Sissoko to work harder to earn his place at Tottenham

Mauricio Pochettino has told Moussa Sissoko to prove himself on the Tottenham training ground if he wants to get a regular place in his plans. The Argentinian boss admitted that the former Newcastle star is failing to make the impact expected at White Hart Lane after being left out of the squad during the 2-1 defeat to Chelsea on Saturday (26 November).

Sissoko was linked with the likes of Real Madrid during the summer transfer window after he impressed for France in the Euro 2016.

However, Tottenham eventually acquired his services on deadline day after beating Everton for his signing, paying around £30m to Newcastle to make him the Pochettino's most expensive signing of the summer.

But the 27-year-old has since failed to prove his worth at Tottenham, having been left out of the squad in the 2-1 defeat at Chelsea.

"Football is not about money," Pochettino explained as quoted by BBC when asked about his decision to drop the Frenchman. "You need to show on the training ground you are better than another team-mate and you deserve to be involved."

Sissoko started four Premier League games following his summer arrival from Newcastle, playing a big part in the impressive 2-0 victory over Manchester City. However, the Frenchman has not played a single league game since receiving a given a three-match ban for elbowing Harry Arter during the goalless draw at Bournemouth.

"If you sign a player and you expect something and you do not find what you expect and if another deserves to be involved, like (Georges-Kevin) Nkoudou or (Vincent) Janssen why? Because we paid money we need to put the player out to play?" the Tottenham boss added.

"Of course he needs to work hard and show in the future he deserves to be involved in the team. I need to take a decision and I believe the players that start on the bench deserve to be involved."