Tottenham Hotspur have decided to sack Jose Mourinho as their manager, following a poor string of results. The news broke on Monday 19 April, with Spurs currently lying in 7th place in the Premier League table. Former Tottenham Hotspur player Ryan Mason will take charge until the end of the season after Mourinho was sacked.
In a statement released on the club’s official website, Chairman Daniel Levy said: “Jose and his coaching staff have been with us through some of our most challenging times as a Club. Jose is a true professional who showed enormous resilience during the pandemic. On a personal level, I have enjoyed working with him and regret that things have not worked out as we both had envisaged. He will always be welcome here and we should like to thank him and his coaching staff for their contribution.”
Tottenham Hotspur Sack Jose Mourinho After Poor Results
Tottenham Hotspur Sack Jose Mourinho: Poor Results the Reason for Sacking
Following the news of the breakaway European Super League, there were many rumours floating that Mourinho refused to train the players on Monday morning, in protest of the controversial plans. As admirable as this would have been, they appear to be false. The ever-reliable Fabrizio Romano confirmed via Twitter, that Mourinho was fired ‘because of results and nothing else.’
Just five wins from the last 14 league games was the nail in the coffin for Mourinho it seems. In addition, there was an element that the players didn’t support the manager, especially towards the end. Following their 3-1 defeat to Manchester United, cameras picked up on Heung-min Son’s body language towards Mourinho.
Son appeared to turn away from Mourinho, completely uninterested in talking to him. Being so disconnected from the manager suggests that Mourinho was losing the dressing room at this point.
Additionally, Tottenham have created a habit of throwing away leads at half-time this season. On no less than seven occasions in the league this season have they been leading at half-time, only to fail to win the match. The most humiliating of these arguably came against West Ham United. Despite leading 3-0 at half-time, West Ham pulled it back to 3-3 in the last ten minutes, thanks to a Manuel Lanzini thunderbolt.
These matches understandably made Spurs fans very frustrated. Mourinho himself even refused to discuss why this was happening, perhaps not knowing himself why his side couldn’t see off these matches.
A poor performance in the Europa League, culminating in a humiliating defeat to Dinamo Zagreb, likely had a big influence on the decision. Despite winning the first leg 2-0, a Mislav Orsic hat-trick embarrassed the Spurs players and Mourinho; a big decline after nearly winning the Champions League just two seasons ago.
Tottenham also have a poor record against the rest of the ‘big six’ this season. Just ten points from ten matches suggest that Mourinho’s Spurs were not on the same level as their rivals. Tottenham have progressed steadily over the past decade, even reaching the Champions League final in 2019. However, they have since regressed, with Mourinho brought in to extend their status as one of Europe’s best sides.
However, he now leaves Tottenham five points off the top four. They also can no longer qualify for the Champions League through the Europa League. With the talent at his disposal, and his experience gained over the years, it simply was not good enough from Jose Mourinho. A manager who prides himself on winning trophies is leaving White Hart Lane trophyless.
Mourinho’s Tactics Didn’t Suit Spurs
Mourinho has always implemented a certain style of football. He places a heavy influence on a strong defence, attempting to make it as difficult as possible for opponents to break through and score. When they have the ball, they look to break quickly and catch their opposition off-guard. This means that attacking players usually have fewer opportunities in matches. Needless to say, it is not exactly attractive football.
Tottenham are blessed with an abundance of quality attacking players. Harry Kane, Heung-min Son, Gareth Bale, Lucas Moura, Erik Lamela. Not forgetting Dele Alli, who has shown in the past that he is a world-class player. Obviously, Mourinho’s ‘park-the-bus’ tactics do not favour them in the slightest.
Tottenham have excellent attacking options, but their defence doesn’t live up to their standards. Eric Dier has been a favourite of Mourinho’s at centre-back, despite having been a squad player under Mauricio Pochettino. He also frequently rotated between Toby Alderweireld, Davinson Sanchez and Joe Rodon, suggesting that he did not have a clear idea of what his best centre-back partnership was.
Add to that the fact that all of his full-backs are more attacking minded, which resulted in Mourinho wanting to create a solid defensive unit, without the right defenders. Mourinho deserves a lot of credit for what he’s done in his career. With Porto, Chelsea, Inter Milan and Real Madrid, he achieved tremendous success. However, perhaps a sense of arrogance in wanting to keep playing the same brand of football has worked against him in this instance.
Potential Candidates to Replace Mourinho
Tottenham decided to sack Jose Mourinho with six Premier League games remaining, following suggestions that he would be replaced in the summer.
Ryan Mason will take charge as interim manager until the end of the season after Jose Mourinho faced the Tottenham Hotspur sack. The former Spurs player has been the head of player development since August 2020, and his first game will be against Southampton, before the Carabao Cup final against Manchester City on April 25.
Julian Nagelsmann has been touted for a number of weeks now to take over from next season. The RB Leipzig manager is the front runner for the job, although Leipzig may demand compensation of at least €15 million to secure his services. Nagelsmann is also the favourite to replace Hansi Flick at Bayern Munich, so Tottenham may have a battle on their hands.
Brendan Rodgers is also being tipped for the role. Rodgers has proved his worth at Leicester, breaking the mould of the traditional top six. Eddie Howe, who cemented Bournemouth as a noble Premier League side, is also in the running.
Tottenham may also be tempted to look closer to home. Ledley King, a Spurs legend, is also one of the favourites for the role. Spurs fans would surely love to see King in the manager’s seat, although they may have their reservations after seeing what happened to Frank Lampard.
Main Photo
Embed from Getty Images
