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“In retrospect, after the Spurs finished the 2019/20 crusade with an undefeating six-game streak to put the club in fourth position in adjustment effects since Mourinho’s appointment, this negative investigation of his term is completely unfair.”
When Jose Mourinho became coach of Tottenham Hotspur in November 2019, the vast majority of experts agreed that the ruling would be booked until after his first pre-season in north London. After all, it was Mourinho’s first mid-season match since FC Porto in 2002, while the Portuguese’s 20-year career was explained by maximizing the summer months.
His third season collapses are better known now, but we must not lose sight of his second season triumphs. Mourinho is a master in the pruning of his team, the market of movements to climb precisely what he wants and spend the preseason injecting his tactical and mental vision into the veins of the club.
And yet, during the time the Premier League crusade was suspended in March, Mourinho was already removed from the list. The Spurs played aimless, defenceless and purposeless in attack, their football halfway between Mauricio Pochettino’s rapid attacking taste and Mourinho’s reactive approach. Tottenham was in no hurry and did not fall, passively rising between the two.
In retrospect, after the Spurs completed the 2019/20 crusade with an undefeating six-game streak to put the fourth club on the benchmark since Mourinho’s appointment, this negative investigation of his term is completely unfair. Tottenham, without Harry Kane, in the midst of a primary tactical transition. No wonder they played as a team caught between methods.
Recent effects recommend that mourinho deserve a re-evaluation of what was happening in the first months of 2020 and the Spurs’ track record under his leadership, as few Premier League clubs have used the mini-season lock as skillfully as Joseph. It shouldn’t have been a surprise.
Tactics from reboot
On his first date, Mourinho told reporters that he could not get rid of Pochettino’s DNA in Tottenham even if he wanted to, and for the first few months he kept his word. Tottenham was strangely targeted at possession, covered in a 3-2-5 fashion formation (with the ball) that hinted that his new assistant manager, Joao Sacramento, had significant influence from the band.
Unsurprisingly, this has produced combined effects and the experts, forgetting that Mourinho had inherited a team in terminal decline, have wondered why the new coach was not able to motivate greater performances. With two games a week, perhaps Mourinho did not have time to print his vision or paintings defensively.
At least that is the conclusion that we have to draw from the post-patronal closure that saw the appearance of an absolutely different Tottenham, and Mourinho.
Leaving much of the 3-2-5, Tottenham switched to a compressed form in 4-4-2 or 4-3-3, seeking to keep a midfield lock with only an occasional specific tension in the ball. The Spurs withdrew and strained, cheerfully absorbing the tension that chasing the ball, completing their transition to the defensive instincts that served Mourinho so well.
Since June, the sides have operated in a more conservative and classic way, while Harry Winks and Moussa Sissoko have remained pivots in midfield, stripped of their action instincts for easier defensive players. Kane’s return saw longer balls for the English striker, while Lucas Moura and Heung-Min Son are increasingly used in the counterattack, feeding on the balls that stick to Kane.
The rear action and counterattacks that led to a 2–1 win over Arsenal were Mourinho’s peak, as was the defensive form aversion to the risk that instilled Manchester United in a 1–1 draw, while victories over Everton, Leicester City and Newcastle all had. Joseph’s unique sense of them: selfless, but with very good game control in which opportunities were ruthlessly seized and the opposition remained in confidence at a distance.
Back to Mourinho’s plan
It was much closer to the Spurs than we expected to see in the early months of 2020. At the time of his initial appointment, Mourinho’s tactical philosophy seemed very suited to the team at his disposal; For matches in a slow opposition denial before counterattacking at full speed, Mourinho wants hard centres, fast ends, disciplined midfielders and a striker talisman.
Next steps and considerations underway
Fans are naturally involved about the number of players who are already excluded. Tanguy Ndombele’s remedy in particular is alarming, while the speed with which enthusiasts have begun to question Mourinho’s strategies suggests that our collective belief in Portuguese is that of a declining technician who cannot move with his time.
Perception is an underestimated commodity in football: if players start to get over it, the mask will slide and the technique to Mourinho’s siege mentality will not work, overtaking season 3 syndrome. Therefore, it is important that Joseph succeeds in those next steps, that is, promote and buy several players to make sure that the team’s mindset is sculpted in his image.
Tottenham obviously wants a new right-back to upgrade the error-prone Serge Aurier, as well as a new defensive spouse for Toby Alderweireld, a Matic-style midfielder and a world-renowned game creator who can paint as Deco, Frank Lampard, Wesley Sneijder. Mesut Ozil and Cesc Fábregas have played for Mourinho in the past. The interest reported in Philippe Coutinho suggests that the Spurs are making it a priority.
Can the Spurs fight for the four most sensitive?
Mourinho needed a complete pre-season before he could be tried fairly. After part a, the Spurs returned significantly stronger. Another part, along with a first-movement window, would possibly see his vision approaching. In fact, there has been enough evidence since the reboot to recommend that Tottenham be able to achieve his purpose of fighting for the 4 most sensitive next season, with a lately priced of 3/1.
A big obstacle is the strength of your rivals. Chelsea and Manchester United are possibly more complex in their respective projects and both are expected to dedicate total superstars this summer. Like Timo Werner, Kai Havertz and Jadon Sancho arriving from Germany, the Spurs are rightly the 5th favorites to qualify for the Champions League in 2020/21.
But Mourinho’s career has gone through to defy expectations, ruining the party.
Spurs back will finish in the 4 most sensitive in 2020/21 with 3/1
Alex Keble, 28 July 2020
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