Sports
Tottenham Supporters’ Trust Voice ‘Concerns’ over Jose Mourinho Appointment
Alberto Saiz/Associated PressJose Mourinho’s appointment as Tottenham Hotspur manager on Wednesday hasn’t been greeted with glee by everybody connected with the north London club.In fact, the Tottenham Hotspur Supporters’ Trust has expressed worries about how Mourinho will coexist with the club’s hierarchy while also voicing some unease about the way Mauricio Pochettino was dismissed from his…
Alberto Saiz/Associated Press
Jose Mourinho's appointment as Tottenham Hotspur manager on Wednesday hasn't been greeted with glee by everybody connected with the north London club.
In fact, the Tottenham Hotspur Supporters' Trust has expressed worries about how Mourinho will coexist with the club's hierarchy while also voicing some unease about the way Mauricio Pochettino was dismissed from his post, per BBC Sport:
“Tottenham Hotspur Supporters' Trust had said ‘many fans thought Poch had earned the right' to try to turn around the side's form and that ‘there are questions that must be asked of the board.'
“Following Mourinho's appointment, it said it had ‘concerns about how Jose and our club's executive board will work together.'
“It added: ‘The club must ensure it does not find itself in the same position in two or three years' time, and we need to hear from the executive board what the long-term thinking behind this appointment is.'”
It's not a problem envisaged by Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy, even if Mourinho's arrival may have caught many off-guard given his past allegiances in London:
ESPN FC @ESPNFC
Here’s what Jose Mourinho said about managing Tottenham in 2015. https://t.co/EY3BmDEhSG
Levy hailed Mourinho in a statement confirming the appointment on the club's official website, calling him “one of the most successful managers in football.”
Levy added: “He has a wealth of experience, can inspire teams and is a great tactician. He has won honours at every club he has coached. We believe he will bring energy and belief to the dressing room.”
Enlivening the dressing room will be one of the priorities of the post-Pochettino era. The Argentinian was shown the door on Tuesday night.
The Guardian‘s David Hytner and Fabrizio Romano noted how Pochettino had been irked by the absence of signings in 2018, as well as Levy's failure to offload wantaway players this year. Both issues look set to directly impact how quickly Mourinho settles into the job.
Spending has been inconsistent while Spurs swapped White Hart Lane for a brand-new stadium, incurring heavy debt in the process. The same debt could naturally hinder Mourinho's attempts to reinforce the squad.
His best ploy may be to sell some of Spurs' obvious assets, including Christian Eriksen. The playmaker told Danish newspaper Ekstra Bladet (h/t the Telegraph‘s Matt Law) he wanted to move on during the summer, but no transfer materialised.
Mourinho's history in the Premier League is defined by heavy spending during stops at Chelsea and Manchester United:
Sky Sports Statto @SkySportsStatto
Jose Mourinho has spent more money on transfers managing in England than Tottenham have since Daniel Levy took charge of Spurs in October 2001.
Mourinho's English spending:
£925m overall
Average fee £17.8mTottenham spending under Levy:
£876m overall
Average fee £7.8m https://t.co/e7EJhnE51Y
It's a method in stark contrast to how Spurs largely operated on Pochettino's watch. The latter succeeded in finding bargain signings, including midfielder Dele Alli, centre-back Toby Alderweireld and forward Heung-Min Son.
They, along with homegrown talents like striker Harry Kane, helped the Lilywhites punch above their weight and reach last season's UEFA Champions League final.
Things will work differently under Mourinho, who is already proving a more expensive proposition for Levy:
B/R Football @brfootball
Jose Mourinho will reportedly earn almost double what Mauricio Pochettino did at Spurs 💰 https://t.co/d85eySBrqm
The justification for the cost of Mourinho has always been the 56-year-old's enviable record of winning trophies at the highest level:
Goal @goal
Jose Mourinho's career so far:
2000-2000 Benfica
2001-2002 U.D. Leiria
2002-2004 Porto 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆
2004-2007 Chelsea 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆
2008-2010 Inter 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆
2010-2013 Real Madrid 🏆🏆🏆
2013-2015 Chelsea 🏆🏆
2016-2018 Man Utd 🏆🏆🏆
2019- Tottenham https://t.co/0k5W5SRmuN
Squawka Football @Squawka
COMPARED: José Mourinho vs. Mauricio Pochettino's managerial records so far in their careers:
Games: 909-514
Wins: 589-235
Win Rate: 64.8%-45.7%
Trophies 25-0This will be interesting. 🍿 https://t.co/aCwDBIfRAK
There is no denying Mourinho has had a knack for turning teams into winners. He has often relied on a pragmatic, almost defensive, approach to the game that may not sit well with many Spurs supporters given the club's proud history of playing expansive, attacking football.
It's also true that for every piece of silverware Mourinho has lifted, he has usually brought just as much controversy and animosity to his clubs. He was dismissed from Chelsea for a second time in 2015 after publicly criticising team doctor Eva Carneiro during a game.
United gave him the boot in 2018 amid rumours of conflicts over spending with executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward, per Metro. Issues regarding Mourinho have grown the longer he's spent at the highest level, particularly in the Premier League.
The apparent discrepancies between playing style and spending philosophy could mean Mourinho's latest venture is fated to doom the way his United stint was. Alternatively, he could be the right winner at the right time to get Tottenham's talented core back on track, rescue the club's top-four hopes and soon assuage the concerns of supporters groups.
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