BISS-NESS CLASS NOT FOR SPURS

MATTHEW DUNN

IF things had worked out differently, Brighton midfielder Yves Bissouma could have been one of those also making his debut for Tottenham on Saturday.

Daniel Levy is understood to have made enquiries about the 25-year-old Mali international (above), who impressed on his return to the Brighton side from the Africa Cup of Nations.

With Aston Villa even more determined in their pursuit of a player who enters the final year of his contract in the summer, Graham Potter joked it was beginning to feel like ‘Groundhog Day’ with all the questions about his future.

“Would he benefit from another couple of seasons at Brighton? Football decides that,” Seagulls boss Potter said. “It’s not me.

“You can speak all you want, but if someone’s prepared to pay the money, you have to listen to that. Football decides that and it’s not me talking or Yves talking or anybody talking.

“As a club we’re quite strong, we don’t have to sell anybody, but we also know selling players helps us improve and develop.

“It isn’t ‘never say never’, but it’s important that Yves is with us. He’s enjoying his football and, while he’s doing that, I think it’s great for us and good for him.

“But everybody’s got their own model as a football club. It’s ridiculous for me to think we can compete with Tottenham because you only have to look at the size and stature of this club.

“They’ve got their own things and we’ve got ours, which is to take players who aren’t necessarily proven in the Premier League and help them get there, and to reach their potential and their maximum.

“We’re not Real Madrid. We’re not buying people. We have to understand where we are in the pyramid.

“Now it’s just a case of being competitive, winning, and trying to develop a team and a club that our supporters are proud of.”