For any Spurs fans struggling to digest the news that Jose Mourinho is your new head coach, things are about to get awfully real when he sits down for his first press conference . *****
This time yesterday, the prevailing view was that Mourinho remains washed as a top-level coach and the move could only spell trouble but I sense the wheel might be turning.
The former Chelsea manager is certainly saying all of the right things – that he is mostly satisfied with Tottenham’s squad, does not need vast sums to spend and has returned to football with a new strategy – and looks refreshed and relaxed.
The question for Spurs fans is this: why will he succeed at your club where he failed at Manchester United?
If you were building a case in favor, there are some factors to cling to. Firstly, Mourinho has thrived when his team are billed as underdogs which is Tottenham’s natural characterization compared with United, Liverpool, Manchester City, Chelsea and Arsenal.
His best work has also come at clubs starved of success and desperate to find some by any means – Inter had not won the Champions League since 1965 for instance, while Chelsea had not won a league title for 49 years when he pitched up in (****************.
Spurs have won just one League Cup this century, but despite the lack of silverware they were undoubtedly ‘successful’ under Mauricio Pochettino so the bar for Mourinho to clear is still quite high. There is also a school of thought that Tottenham’s squad fits his eye.
Pochettino wanted to rebuild the squad with a younger dynamic by selling the likes of Toby Alderweireld, Christian Eriksen, Danny Rose and even Jan Vertonghen, but Mourinho might appreciate a more mature core of players.
Tottenham’s squad certainly has the physical profile he has always prioritised – with Eric Dier likely to enjoy a resurgence – and they have ready-made goal threats in Harry Kane and Son Heung-min. A question mark over Mourinho at Old Trafford was his inability to nurture attackers such as Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial, but Tottenham’s forwards do not need much guidance. He will let them get on with it and concentrate on tightening up at the back.
Mourinho’s lack of empathy and connection with, if you’ll pardon this overused term, millennial players is another worry. His man management is built on sworn loyalty, bordering on a cult of personality, and this inspired devotion from the likes of Javier Zanetti, John Terry or Marco Materazzi. This style has suffered from diminishing returns in this decade though, but the hope for Spurs fans is that his newly assembled backroom team will bring a lighter touch and more modern ideas.
Crikey, I’m even talking myself round now.
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