Percy Tau, the Bafana Bafana star, has reportedly spoken out regarding alleged “ill-treatment” from Leandro Trossard during their time together at Brighton and Hove Albion.
Tau's spell with the English Premier League side, from 2018 to 2021, was predominantly marked by loan spells, with his actual involvement limited to just six appearances and one assist across all competitions in the latter part of the 2020/21 season, under manager Graham Potter.
Both Tau and Trossard found themselves in direct competition for a starting berth, each striving to secure a regular spot in the Seagulls' first XI.
Claims have surfaced suggesting the Belgian winger gave off “bad vibes” towards the former Mamelodi Sundowns player. Tau reportedly shared that he had heard about Trossard's alleged conduct even prior to his departure from Brighton, but chose to dismiss these rumors, instead concentrating his efforts on impressing the coaching staff.
’I HEARD THEM MENTIONING IT’
“I’ve always heard people, even when I was at Brighton, mentioning this but I didn’t pay too much attention to it because I wanted to play,” said Tau during the interview with Robert Marawa on Marawa Sports World.
“That was the whole thing about me, my focus was all about trying to impress the coach and trying to play.
“And I saw the respect I got from players. Some of them would ask me why you’re not playing.
“Even when I left to Al Ahly, I spoke to Adam Lallana, he was shocked. He asked, ‘Why you’re doing that?’ It was not a decision but I spent time on it.
“So, I didn’t pay much attention to [Lallana] thing. All I wanted was to play. We played together against Manchester City, when he came on.
“We were in the similar position, of course there would be competition. But I would have loved to be given more chance to prove myself because it’s not like I felt I didn’t belong there or there was a gap between myself and them.”
