Harambee Stars skipper Victor Wanyama finally sealed a move out of Tottenham Hotspur on Tuesday (03.03.2020), landing a three-year deal with Major League Soccer (MLS) side Montreal Impact.
The move puts to an end an intriguing last few months for the 28-year old midfield enforcer who had seen playing time fade away at North London and will finally breathe a new lease of life to his career, a much welcome bit for Stars tactician Francis Kimanzi.
“I am happy that I have finally found a new home. It has been a difficult last few months for me and to finally make a move to get playing time is such a relief. I am delighted with the club; it has great tradition and great facilities. I had a tour around today and I can say I am delighted being here,” Wanyama told Capital Sport just after signing his deal in Canada.
Shortly after news of the move broke on Wednesday (04.03.20), Kenyans on Twitter took to the platform to congratulate and also express their displeasure. This made Wanyama a top trending topic in Kenya.
The midfielder’s woes started off with a troublesome knee injury that kept him in and out of action from the 2018/2019 season where he played limited matches. The injury had seen him miss out on a significant part of the club’s pre-season.
But still, he managed to play a pivotal role for Spurs, helping them reach the final of the Champions League last season and despite throwing everything at the knockout phases win over Manchester City and Ajax couldn’t get a minute of action in the Madrid finale.
Enter the new season and his fortunes further changed as he was often frozen out of the team and played only 23 minutes of Premier League action, both coming on as a second-half substitute.
His last piece of action was a late substitute appearance against Bayern Munich in the Champions League on November 12.
“The hardest time a player has is when he is injured. I endured a very tough time during my spell with injury but I want to thank the club and my teammates for all they did for me at that time and the support they gave me. It was the hardest moment for me,” Wanyama notes.
But, even though he has been frozen out of the matchday squads, Wanyama continued to train at the Club’s Hotspur Way base in North London.
Even as he moves out of the British Capital to Canada, Wanyama says he carries fond memories with him from his time at Spurs having joined them in the 2016/17 season.
“I can say I have had the best moments of my career in Spurs. We achieved great things, helped the team to the best-ever finish in the league in my first season and played regularly in the Champions League. I loved the team and gave my all for the club,” Wanyama told Capital Sport.
He now sets his sights on making more memories at his new address in Canada, and most specifically, excited to be working with a Premier League legend; Thierry Henry.
“He is a very nice guy and achieved great things in his career. I am looking forward to learning and working under him. It will be a delight for me and hopefully, we achieve great things together,” Wanyama noted.
Wanyama became the first-ever Kenyan player to score in the UEFA Champions League when he scored the first goal in Celtic’s 2–1 win over Barcelona on 7th November 2012.
Wanyama who is the son of former Kenyan football star Noah Wanyama has had successful career thus far, he has previously played for Kenya’s AFC Leopards, Belgian Football club Beerschot, Scottish side Celtic, Premier League club Southampton before joining Spurs where he has been since 2016.
This article was first published by Capital Sports.