Yves Bissouma joined Tottenham Hotspur from Brighton & Hove Albion in June 2022, signing a contract that runs until 2026.
After a challenging first season, the Mali international midfielder thrived under Ange Postecoglou’s new system at the start of the 2023/24 campaign. Playing alongside Pape Sarr and James Maddison, Yves helped Spurs win eight of their first 10 matches, propelling the team to the top of the Premier League. However, his season faced setbacks with red cards at Luton in October and against Nottingham Forest in December, followed by a trip to the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) with Mali in January and February 2024, where his team reached the quarter-finals.
Despite these interruptions, Yves finished the season strong, accumulating 28 Premier League appearances, 26 of which were starts.
A dynamic midfielder, Yves began his football journey at Majestic SC before moving to AS Real Bamako in Mali. In March 2016, he made the switch to France, joining Lille OSC, where he played 55 senior matches and scored four goals.
In July 2018, Yves signed for Brighton & Hove Albion, making his debut the following month. His first Premier League goal came in July 2020, earning a nomination for the league’s Goal of the Month award. Over four seasons with Brighton, Yves made 123 appearances across all competitions, scoring six goals and playing a key role in their historic ninth-place Premier League finish in the 2021/22 season, the highest in the club’s history.
Yves’ first season at Spurs in 2022/23 was disrupted by injuries and the established partnership of Rodrigo Bentancur and Pierre-Emile Højbjerg, limiting him to 28 appearances in all competitions, with 12 starts. He made his Spurs debut off the bench against Southampton on the opening day of the season and earned his first start in a 1-1 draw at West Ham in August. While he began to see more action leading up to the World Cup break in November, an ankle injury sustained against Manchester City in February sidelined him for three months, though he returned for the final three matches of the season.
Internationally, Yves has been a key figure for Mali since making his senior debut in October 2015, scoring three goals. In 2016, he netted the crucial goal that sent Mali to the AFCON final, where they finished as runners-up. He was again called up for the rescheduled 2022 AFCON tournament. By the end of the 2022/23 season, Yves had earned 37 caps for his country.
Ivory Coast
