Victor Wanyama has left Tottenham Hotspur to join Major League Soccer team Montreal Impact. The Kenyan midfielder was a huge success for Celtic before joining Southampton in 2013. Wanyama joined Tottenham in 2016 and now begins a new journey in the United States.
Victor Wanyama: The Enigma
Victor Wanyama joined Spurs in 2016 and was a major part of that season’s squad. The midfielder played 47 times in all competitions for the club. He scored four goals that season as he helped Tottenham finish second in the Premier League. His box to box game, hard tackling and skill made him a popular player. But, that talent was never fully realised.
Incredibly, in the following three years, Wanyama only played 50 times for the club. Just slightly more than he had played in that first season. A stunning goal at Anfield in a 2-2 draw in October 2019 suggested that he was coming back into form, but injuries and a lack of match fitness have seen his Spurs career fizzle out.
Injuries
Victor Wanyama missed 57 matches between 2017 and 2019. Two knee injuries and a cartilage injury meant he spent more time in the fitness centre at Tottenham than he did playing minutes on the pitch.
Wanyama had forged an aggressive yet skilful midfield partnership with Moussa Dembele and when Spurs sold the latter in January 2019, it was seen as breaking up one of Spurs’ major strengths under then-manager Mauricio Pochettino. Then injuries returned and the sale of Dembele looked to have been hasty, causing much ire amongst the Spurs fans.
Tottenham Hotspur published a brief statement wishing Wanyama ‘all the best for his future.’
Transfer Leaves Spurs Without Another Player
Whilst injuries cost Victor Wanyama playing time, the Kenyan was frozen out by Jose Mourinho completely. Yet Wanyama could surely have been given one last chance to prove himself. With record signing Tanguy N’Dombele ironically unfit for the most part since his move to Spurs, the sale leaves Tottenham another player in the squad light.
With the top four looking less and less likely, selling players when they cannot replace them seems an odd decision for the club. The players desire to leave is perfectly understandable.
Victor Wanyama will be remembered as a player that gave so much in that first season but just never got fully fit or the chance to prove his fitness once more. His future now lies in America whilst Tottenham try to save a season heading toward mediocrity.
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