Tottenham gambling big with Jose Mourinho
Tottenham owner Daniel Levy is gambling with the future of his club in hiring Jose Mourinho.
In a stunning move, Tottenham released a statement announcing the dismissal of manager Mauricio Pochettino. Hours later, the club announced that their replacement was none other than Jose Mourinho.
The firing of Pochettino was shocking enough but bringing on Jose Mourinho and the baggage that entails is a risky move for Daniel Levy. Especially with the demands that Mourinho has come with in the past.
The Portuguese manager has not left in good terms wherever he’s managed. His stints at Real Madrid, Chelsea, and Manchester United have all ended unceremoniously with many wondering if his time managing big clubs was over.
With Spurs, he now get another chance to prove himself. If his track record is any indication, this has the possibility of going wrong very quickly.
According to The Guardian, Levy said,
"In José we have one of the most successful managers in football. He has a wealth of experience, can inspire teams and is a great tactician. He has won honours at every club he coached. We believe he will bring energy and belief to the dressing room.”"
Breaking down Levy’s quote, it sounds like he wants the club to finally win a trophy. If there was one criticism levied at Pochettino was that despite the football his team played, they were never able to parlay it into a trophy.
This is a case of Levy believing that the ends justify the means. For his sake and for Tottenham’s, that better be the case.
Some of the accolades he lauded towards Mourinho may have applied in the past but recent history has brought that into questions.
He may no longer be a master tactician or inspire teams. During his time at Manchester United, his tactical scheme seemed to be to sit back and try to hit teams on the break despite having a wealth of attacking talent. His United teams were boring to watch and were a mess in defense.
His managing style does not inspire anymore which led to him losing the locker room and saw Mourinho involved in a feud with Paul Pogba. Add in his treatment of Luke Shaw and the way he pushed Iker Casillas out of Real Madrid and it’s clear that he always picks on one of his players.
At the moment, we don’t know who at Spurs will be the unlucky target.
The relationship between Levy, Pochettino, and his players seemed to deteriorate greatly after losing the Champions League final against Liverpool. Levy did spend and bring in new players but this was only years after not doing so.
Jose Mourinho is a manager who wants to spend. Levy may have promised to do that considering how much he is paying Jose Mourinho according to Daniel Storey.
Tottenham are reportedly paying Jose Mourinho £15m a year. That would mean he earns £88,000 a week more than any of the club's players.
— Daniel Storey (@danielstorey85) November 20, 2019
That is twice what Pochettino was earning and is an indicator of how strained that relationship really was.
Spurs signed Mourinho to a contract ending in the 2022/2023 season. He usually lasts three seasons at a club going scorced Earth in the third one. If Tottenham don’t bring in the players he wants, he is going to complain.
Next. Jose Mourinho has arrived back in London, this time to manage Tottenham…. dark
He got almost everything he wanted while at Manchester United and it still wasn’t enough. For an owner who does not like to spend, the Mourinho tenure may prove to be costly in more ways than one.