Yves Bissouma agrees one-year deal with Ajax

Yves Bissouma has agreed a two-year deal with Ajax, according to journalist Fabrizio Romano, tying the midfielder to the Amsterdam club until the summer of 2027.

The 30-year-old Malian left Tottenham as a free agent this summer after four years at the club. Dutch outlet Telegraaf reported the same terms and said Bissouma was already in Amsterdam to undergo a medical, with Yahoo Sports adding that the initial deal runs to the end of the season with an option for a further year.

Bissouma made 111 appearances for Spurs after a big-money move from Brighton and Hove Albion in the summer of 2022, but he never settled in north London. He was suspended in 2024 over a video that appeared to show him inhaling laughing gas, and last season the manager dropped him for persistent lateness to training. He played only 11 times, all in the league, as Tottenham finished 17th in the Premier League for the second season running.

A former captain of Mali, Bissouma was recently left out of the squad for the Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers against Cape Verde and Liberia, the latter currently third in their World Cup qualifying group. He broke through at Lille before joining Brighton in 2018, and his English career is over.

Ajax sit fourth in the Eredivisie. A defensive midfielder by trade, Bissouma will be expected to add Premier League and international experience to a side closing the gap on the leaders, with the move offering him a chance to rebuild his reputation after a difficult spell in London.