When Jose Mourinho first arrived at Tottenham Hotspur in November 2019 he made it very clear that his job was a clear one and that it was to merely construct on the foundations laid by Mauricio Pochettino.
The Argentine had led Spurs to three consecutive high three finishes within the Premier League, together with one second place, earlier than a fourth-place end and a historic Champions League remaining.
“I do not need to make large adjustments. I would like to respect the bottom and the bottom is the work they did for 5 and a half years,” stated Mourinho in his first press convention.
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“It’s not the work they did for 2 days. The work we did for 2 days (earlier than his first game) we hope that’s a plus. We hope that’s an replace. Not a change. The base is what they did earlier than. This isn’t about me.
“This isn’t about me coming right here and saying every thing was mistaken with Mauricio, in no way. Not in any respect. I simply come to strive to perceive why within the final 12 months the ends in the Premier League weren’t good and to strive to perceive how I might help them to attain once more a good degree as a result of, as I used to be saying, the gamers are superb and I’m not right here to make dramatic adjustments.
“I’m simply right here to observe the method and get throughout my concepts in a progressive method: don’t lose that stability, don’t create the confusion of their brains. In soccer you’ve gotten to categorical your self, you can’t be confused. So I’m going to be very, very cautious in relation to that.”
The query now could be whether or not Mourinho has been as cautious as he promised he could be.
The Portuguese has been criticised up to now for creating divisions inside golf equipment he has labored at, frightening and prodding his gamers and generally the workers so as to get what he needs out of them. It’s a methodology that will get the perfect out of some gamers and alienates others.
After a promising begin in north London, with many gamers warming to Mourinho, the sample seems to have been repeated at Tottenham this season with quite a few squad members discovering themselves out of the image within the Premier League for lengthy intervals of the marketing campaign.
In these eventualities there may be not solely complaining and sniping, but a worry within the soccer on show from these gamers chosen as they fear that it will likely be their flip in exile subsequent.
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Skipper Hugo Lloris made it clear in a visibly disgusted interview after the shambolic defeat at Dinamo Zagreb final month that the togetherness so rigorously constructed throughout Pochettino’s period – albeit one having begun to erode in direction of the top of the Argentine’s time – was nowhere to be seen now.
Mourinho has a behavior of showing to strive to defend a few of his gamers solely to not directly criticise them in doing so. For others he fairly clearly throws them underneath the bus after errors and their absence from future choices is telling.
soccer.london understands that a few of his feedback on Sunday have angered some among the many squad.
Mourinho was requested about about Toby Alderweireld and Serge Aurier’s absence, which left him with Eric Dier as the one defender on the bench at St James Park for Sunday’s draw at Newcastle.
The Tottenham boss claimed that it was all down to missed Covid checks that meant Alderweireld and Aurier had at some point much less to work with their team-mates, though there may be some confusion over whether or not that was truly the case with the Belgian.
“I do not need to say indiscipline. I do not need to say self-discipline. I do not need to say that,” Mourinho stated of the pair. “This is what it’s. The gamers that landed in London on Wednesday after internationals and those that performed in London as within the case of the English boys, they’d the checks and so they may instantly be in coaching on Thursday and so Thursday, Friday and Saturday and so they could not. They appeared solely yesterday.”
Alderweireld and Aurier had each been disregarded of the final match at Aston Villa with sickness cited by the membership earlier than assembly up with Belgium and the Ivory Coast squads respectively the following morning.
On Sunday Mourinho turned the query again on these reporters within the press convention and requested whether or not Spurs had misplaced matches with Alderweireld and Aurier within the facet, suggesting by that that they weren’t the saviours on this state of affairs.
When requested whether or not he was questioning the will of the 2 gamers, Mourinho regarded to be contemplating his reply but as he went to converse the Spurs’ press officer acquired in there first and stated: “I feel Jose has defined all he wants to clarify there.”
The downside for Mourinho – as it’s for all managers – is that finally the gamers will determine his future.
Harry Kane in the course of the Premier League match between Newcastle United and Tottenham Hotspur at St James Park
Mourinho at his finest creates a ‘them and us’ environment, but the important thing to that’s creating an unbreakable unit inside the membership.
He wants his gamers to combat for him and provides him every thing on the pitch, placing their our bodies on the road for him, but his divisive type of management could make that tough.
After Sunday’s show when it was identified by BBC Radio 5 Live that his groups are often good at defending leads, he answered bluntly: “Same coach, completely different gamers.”
It was hardly a rallying name for his gamers to come collectively behind him for the enterprise finish of the season.
It would appear unbelievable to have recommended 18 months in the past that with Spurs trying to launch themselves into a high 4 spot, Gareth Bale, Dele Alli, Alderweireld and Son Heung-min wouldn’t have began such a match.
Son’s exclusion was down to his health ranges but Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy’s lengthy held dream of bringing Bale again to north London has washed ashore on the rocks of a clumsy relationship with Mourinho.
Bale was not even going to enter the fray on Sunday, with Moussa Sissoko set to be Tottenham’s third and remaining substitution.
It was solely with Newcastle’s equaliser that Mourinho modified his thoughts and had to name upon the Welshman – who he has began in simply six Premier League matches since his much-heralded return to north London – to save the day.
There’s no doubting that some gamers have shone underneath Mourinho. Harry Kane has hit his prime this season underneath the Portuguese whereas Son, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, Sergio Reguilon have all impressed throughout his reign.
The Portuguese has acquired extra out of Tanguy Ndombele, Serge Aurier, Lucas Moura and Erik Lamela than the membership was getting in earlier seasons.
He has additionally had to deal with a declining defence, unable to rely upon Alderweireld in his prime alongside Jan Vertonghen as Pochettino did.
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Rather than repair the issue with a large cash elite defender, Spurs unfold their tight funds out throughout their seven signings final summer season to bolster a skinny squad, with younger Swansea defender Joe Rodon purchased as an alternative with the idea that former membership document signing Davinson Sanchez had all the time been the inheritor to the defensive crown and the duo may finally star collectively.
The Colombian has struggled for consistency although with out Vertonghen’s steerage alongside him, making common errors and was one other who spent months out of Mourinho’s Premier League matchday squads earlier than returning as the primary title on the staff sheet up to now 9 matches.
Mourinho has not been ready to repair the defence. The stats did present that on Sunday Spurs went into the game with the joint second least quantity of objectives conceded within the Premier League but a lot of that has come by getting our bodies in entrance of the again line to defend them.
It was a summer season switch window Mourinho declared himself very completely satisfied with, shocked on the high quality introduced in. Now he cuts a annoyed determine but Spurs and Levy particularly may also be simply as annoyed.
The chairman’s two-decade lengthy hunt to convey the Portuguese to north London has not introduced the dream he was sold.
Mourinho is among the game’s most profitable managers with greater than 25 main trophies in 20 years or so of administration and Levy believed that he was the lacking hyperlink to construct on Pochettino’s work and ship the silverware that has been so conspicuous by its absence within the chairman’s 20 years on the helm.
Jose Mourinho had lots to say in his press convention following Tottenham’s 2-2 draw at Newcastle
(Image: Serena Taylor/Newcastle United by way of Getty Images)
Tottenham have high quality of their squad – a number of it – and so they added some actual pedigree final summer season and even Mourinho admitted in that first press convention in 2019 earlier than these seven reinforcements that they didn’t want a lot.
“Very related to earlier than. That’s what I maintain saying. Very related to earlier than,” he stated when requested what type of play he would convey to Tottenham.
“Of course I’m going to strive to add some particulars and generally particulars that may make the distinction and progressively we are going to arrive to a fingerprint but the type of play has to be all the time tailored not simply to the membership tradition but particularly to the gamers’ qualities.
“That’s the best way it’s so these are the gamers, they’ve the qualities, tailored to a sure method of playing soccer and that is the best way I would like to do it.”
He added: “We can not win the Premier League this season. We can – I’m not saying we are going to do – we will win it subsequent season.”
Tottenham haven’t challenged in Mourinho’s second season and they’re a great distance from doing so – 25 factors off the highest of Premier League desk.
Mourinho has some professional issues about Spurs’ defence and the mentality of his gamers – for a few of them went in a related path underneath Pochettino, albeit for various causes.
The downside for the Portuguese although is that he’s playing a dangerous game in creating divisions inside a squad that’s but to witness first hand what his strategies can obtain.
Spurs are nonetheless simply two factors off the highest 4 and this month’s Carabao Cup remaining is the nice hope that Mourinho can finish the look ahead to a trophy but one of many continent’s finest in Manchester City stand in the best way and the Spurs gamers will want to be extra collectively than ever if they’re to upset the percentages.
Mourinho says he wants time and that he doesn’t get the identical endurance different managers do, but so as to get that he wants his gamers to have his again and feedback comparable to these after one other disappointing show on Sunday do him no favours in any respect and will solely hasten his demise if he’s not cautious.
