Atlético Ottawa adds Abdoul Sissoko to Midfield.

Atlético Ottawa has announced the signing of defensive midfielder Abdoul (Abdou) Sissoko. Sissoko will be joining the squad on a 1+1 contract. While the squad has been preparing for the upcoming season over in Spain, the management team has been working hard to shore up the defensive side of the midfield. Ben McKendry and Chris Mannella were the only defensive midfielders signed to the team and Sissoko will add much-needed depth.

The 31-year-old (soon to be 32 on March 20) Malian footballer has been playing professional football since 2008 and has played in France, Italy, Spain, Turkey, and Kuwait. Sissoko started off in Troyes AC (Ligue 2 France) before moving on to Udinese (Serie A) where he was there for a year before being loaned to Brest (Ligue 1).

After featuring in La Liga 2, Sissoko signed with top division side Granada CF in La Liga for a season-long loan before returning back to La Liga 2.

After spending 3 years in Turkey with Akhisarspor, Abdou Sissoko joined Al Kuwait SC which is probably where Atletico Ottawa head coach Carlos Gonzalez scouted him out.

So, what type of player should Ottleti fans expect? This 6 foot, left footed CDM. Is your typical stay at home defensive midfielder who will act as the wall in front of the backline. His highlight tape shows many last-ditch tackles and tremendous positioning against tough opponents in the Turkish topflight. Moving forward, Sissoko is confident in his dribbling abilities but with the likes of Bassett and Aleman in front of him, that is probably a side of his game we won’t have to see. On the passing front, Sissoko holds the typical CDM trait of being able to spring attackers on a break with fantastic through balls, which with the pace of our wingers on our roster, may be a tactic used more than often.

Although Sissoko is 32, he will provide great leadership and experience to the locker room as well as much needed depth to the Defensive Midfield.

Abdou Sissoko is the 20th player signed to the team and with a couple of players still on trial, including USports Draft picks Julien Bruce and Jose deCunha. It would appear Fernando Lopez and the upper brass are slowly approaching the finalized roster for the upcoming 2022 Canadian Premier League season.