Köln coach hails “difference maker” Moore after impressive debut by Spurs loanee

Mikey Moore started his Bundesliga spell on the right track with a brilliant second-half performance against Stuttgart. Köln were trailing the game 1-0 when he came on as a substitute, but he was thoroughly involved in all promising attacks despite a 4-1 defeat to his side.

Moore’s all-action display started by winning a corner-kick in a matter of seconds. He then played a big part in Köln’s only goal that eventually went down as an own-goal by Ramon Hendriks.

“Both will still be important for us this season,” said Köln’s coach René Wagner about his half-time substitutes Moore and Ellyes Skhiri, who returned to the club this summer from Eintracht Frankfurt.

“Moore is a player who can make the difference for us,” added the 38-year-old in his praise of the Tottenham Hotspur loanee before analyzing the game. “It would’ve been a different game had we used our chances. But we play in Stuttgart, and they only need one chance to go 2-0 up.”

Moore will most likely start next week’s clash against Werder Bremen, while we could also see the 19-year-old playing alongside Said El Mala. The sought-after attacker missed Friday’s game with illness.

El Mala was on target when Köln started their campaign with a home win last week against Hoffenheim. Moore was also heavily involved for Tottenham Hotspur before late arrivals pushed him away from the club on a loan deal.