Wanyama planning to stay at Tottenham next season

Tottenham Hotspur defensive midfielder Victor Wanyama knows it hasn’t been the best of seasons for him, but he’s planning to stick around for another season, according to an interview in Goal. Wanyama, who was limited to just 13 games last season while dealing with a knee injury, is currently with Kenya at the African Cup of Nations in Egypt. He took some time to reflect on what was a frustrating season on a personal level, but expressed hope that AFCON can help springboard him back to fitness.

“For me it was a difficult season and I was tired for a long time because of injury. I was hoping to help the team more but it did not work out well.

”The African Championship is a good opportunity to regain my level and prepare my fitness fully before the holiday and then prepare for the new season, which will be a new personal challenge.”

Wanyama has been linked with a move away from Spurs this offseason, and it’s not surprising in the least. On his day and when healthy, Wanyama is a force in defensive midfield, but he has not been healthy in recent years and has rarely been on his day. With Pochettino and Daniel Levy planning big movies for Tanguy Ndombele and Giovani Lo Celso, Spurs are shaking up their midfield, and while there may be a role for Wanyama next season it seems clear that they are not counting on him to stay injury free over the course of an entire season.

That said, it does appear as though Wanyama is planning for another season at the Tottenham Hotspur stadium, and while there has been talk that Spurs would listen to offers for him, concrete rumors as to where he might go have been very few thus far.

Wanyama went on to praise Mauricio Pochettino and talk about how much he enjoys playing under the Argentine manager.

“Pochettino is a great coach who works very hard in every training [session]. He has a constant desire to succeed and win all matches, which is reflected in the players through his help. He has his own way of dealing with each player, advising us on and off the pitch continuously and taking care of everyone to get even more out of every player on the pitch.

”I always look forward to working with him and taking advantage of his advice to develop and perform in the stadium in the best way possible.”

Kenya are long shots in this summer’s AFCON; the Harambee Stars face off against Algeria in their opening match today at 4:00 p.m. ET (9:00 p.m. BST).