Moussa Sissoko’s all-time sporting hero is an Arsenal legend, he reluctantly revealed to talkSPORT!
The France international, who has overcome a difficult start at Tottenham to become a huge fans’ favourite, says he has looked up to fellow countryman Patrick Viera since he was a boy and ‘tried to be him’ when he was younger.
Sissoko sat down for a series of quick-fire questions ahead of Tottenham‘s Premier League trip to Manchester City on Saturday – which is LIVE and EXCLUSIVE on talkSPORT.
And he revealed how he was inspired by a fellow French midfielder who starred across north London between 1996 and 2005.
Asked who his first sporting hero was, the Spurs star said: “I don’t want to have any problems if I say his name, but it was Vieira!
“We play in the same position, he is tall like me, playing in the France national team like I am now.
“So I was following him and tried to be like him when I was younger.”
The midfielder also revealed he cried after Spurs’ Champions League final defeat to Liverpool.
The debate over Sissoko’s handball within the opening seconds of the Madrid clash is likely to be debated by fans for generations, with Mo Salah’s resulting penalty kick effectively killing the game with less than two minutes played.
And the Spurs man says it took him a month to get over the heartbreak as he watched the Reds lift the trophy.
Click Here: new york city fc jersey
He added: “When was the last time I cried? After the Champions League final, but nobody saw me because I was hiding in my room.
“It was very difficult to recover from that, to lose in the final was painful. Even during my holiday I was still thinking about it, and in some ways even now.
“I can say it easily took me a month to feel better.”
GameDay on talkSPORT, Saturday August 17 line-up:
Saturday is GameDay on talkSPORT and talkSPORT 2 as we become your go to destination for all the Premier League action. We’ll bring you LIVE commentary of Premier League games across all three time slots on Saturday – 12.30pm, 3pm and 5.30pm – including Manchester City vs Tottenham