Right now, as I write this I still support Jose Mourinho and do believe that he is the right man for the job but it is becoming harder and harder to defend him.
Mourinho does have some poor players to work with, especially in defence but the brutal truth is that the Spurs squad is far stronger than West Ham’s and they should not be losing to David Moyes’ men, certainly not in the manner that they did today.
Mourinho chose the team, including Eric Dier and Davinson Sanchez in defence. Mourinho chose the tactics and it was his decision to play Erik Lamela as opposed to Gareth Bale or dare I say it, Dele Alli.
And this is not the first time that Mourinho’s selections have been questionable.
It is one thing to play dreadful football and get a result but it is something else entirely when you lose against an inferior side while playing woefully.
Mourinho has my loyalty at the moment but it is not blind loyalty and while I want to be patient and give him the chance to stamp his style on the squad and bring in his type of players, there is only so much that one can take.
Top Four is now very unlikely and the way we are playing it is hard to make a case for success in the Europa League which means that the Champions League and it’s £100 million payday is probably beyond our reach this season.
Whether Mourinho can survive such a failure is very doubtful and things have to change rapidly.
Support is fast dwindling and I cannot say hand on heart how much longer I will back the former Real Madrid manager.
We cant compete with City, Chelsea , Liverpool or United , strange. We have finished above all of them , more than once in the last 5 years too. Meaning, look what Poch did at club with no backing. This club could win everything if it was owned by a board who wanted to invest. Tragedy
Why not start with a front foot instead of chasing a game by fielding Dier and Sanchez what did he expect to happen you can’t commend by saying he acted decisively when it was his fault in the 1st place to begin with there is pattern happening here lately in Spurs team either we chasing games or we take the lead and we can’t keep it to see the game and both cases we end up losing the game do you think it is happening by coincidence or lack of luck it is neither it is managers job to see and sort why this is happening every game that is where Mourinho is failing the rest he has nothing to do it existed before him ie Enic And Levy etc.
Mr Jose is guilty for not dropping Dier and Sanchez and not having 1st 11 premier league starters for every game the only starters he have is Lloris Hojbjerg Kane and Son that is 1/3 of the team you can’t win games with that inconsistency make 11.1st team players and stick with them then you can see the weakest links to address it and until he does that this drop will continue you can keep on blaming other factors which we know existed for a long time ie Enic and Levy etc etc.
I don’t know what planet you’re on, but NDom has had a handful of decent games in over a year, Sissoko, Winks and Lamela are garbage, Moura not that much better, and Sonny has not had a good game since Kane got injured a few weeks ago.
We are 100% reliant on Kane, Son, and NDom being in good form to elevate us out of mediocrity – and none of them have been for weeks.
Bruce, you’re posting with the benefit of hindsight – Sanchez and Dier are 2 of our senior centre backs – thats not Jose’s fault. Bale played well, but would he have done for 90 minutes? Nothing over the last 6 months suggests so. Dele still thinks he can get by with the occasional backheel and a selection of failed nutmegs.
Also, what with all the vitriol, am I the only person that thinks we absolutely bossed the second half, got back in the game, then controlled it, hitting the woodwork twice.
We were a few inches off winning 3-2.
If anything – and hold on to your hats here – I think Jose is TO BE COMMENDED today, because he acted decisively and made the 2 perfect subs at half time that turned the flow of the game and gave us a genuine chance.
Excepting Reggie, pick me a back 5 (including keeper) capable of being top 4 from our squad? Which of the defenders in our squad would get into any defence from the top 6-8 clubs in the PL? There isn’t a queue for a single one of them. No defence = no foundations. We can look at the midfield later.
Like what? This would suggest you are blaming everything on too many games and tiredness?
Unless managers change and evolve they have a sell by date. This was very much the case with George Graham, for example. Mourinho has reached that point and it’s sad to watch and then to listen to him after the game. If he is to remain at Tottenham he needs to swallow his pride, get a strong revolutionary number 2 and look at what is going on around him. Does he seriously not look at Man City and Leicester? Tottenham do not have the quality of City but surely have a similar quality to Leicester. Mourinho’s team has a defence, a midfield and an attack but none of them seem to have been introduced to each other. There is no clear pattern or structure. The team is set up to defend by sitting too deep and not allowing Hojbjerg to dictate as he is forever attempting to help out the defence; the other 2 midfield players become isolated and don’t seem to know whether to support the forwards or drop back and help Hojbjerg. How many seriously good games have Ndombele, Sissoko, Winks, Lamela et al actually had this season. Tottenham need to be brave and push the defence up and free Hojbjerg to become an influential midfield player not an auxiliary defender. Surely we can find 3 players in midfield who can dominate most games. This would put us on the front foot rather than sitting back and allowing the opposition to dictate which is now happening in almost every game. The defence isn’t good enough so why try to defend? The only time we played well against West Ham was when we picked up the pace and pushed forward. Why wait until we are 2 down before we do this. We have 12 points from 13 games – relegation form over 1/3 of the season. Mourinho oversees this and game by game simply does not have an answer. If he really was the Special One or not past it, he should sort it out. Moyes is a similar type of manager with a much weaker team and squad. Makes you think. He should go and is probably staying simply because we can’t afford to sack him.
So I posted a long response on the previous blog from HH that basically said just what Bruce has said above. Maybe I was the inspiration.
Jose’s job is to decide how best to coach the players, who to pick for each game and the tactics. That is a coach’s job. Anyone moaning on about how Jose can’t be blamed for this that and the next thing clearly doesn’t understand why he’s being paid millions of pounds. Spurs are no better off now that we were when Poch got sacked. A man who says his coaching methods are second to none and who has Harry Kane, Son, NDombele, Hojbjerg, Reguillon, Alderweireld and dare I say Gareth Bale in the squad is 9th after 24 games; almost 20 points off City. ENIC are just as culpable for the way they have run this club but please don’t kid yourself that all these losses are on the board and the players.
I questioned the evangelical nature of HH’s wholly subjective and relentless defence of a man who cannot do this job in 2021. My post was soon removed (there was no swearing, insults or any such nonsense, just a considered response to the churlish piece). I then posted again to ask where my original post had gone and was met with “Awaiting for Approval”.
Good luck with your blogs and website pal… Jose will inevitably get tossed for being sh!t at his job (anyone with eyes can see it coming a mile off) and you’ll continue preaching arrogantly without allowing anything that may show you up, to be published in response.
Our squad is much better than Leicester’s, West Ham’s, Aston Villa’s and Everton’s It’s also better than Arsenal’s, Wolves, Southampton and Leeds. Form over the last two months suggest we are heading to finish between 12th and 14th.
Kane, Son and Bale are an unstoppable striking force. Hojbjerg, Ndobele plus one from Sissoko, Winks, Lamela or Moura are a very able midfield. There are more than enough proven defenders to make a very good back four. Lets stop the crap about the players not working hard enough or not caring enough. We have a manager who was demonstratively out of date before he took the job on. He’s been hiding ever since. He got found out before Christmas and other Prem sides are seeing us off with barely disguised contempt. If Moriniou had anything left up his sleeve we’d have seen it by now. There’s writing on the wall that harder to ignore than anything I’ve seen since the Maze dirty protest. We’re going nowhere except backwards so unless there’s anyone who really thinks that Morinhou will be our manager next season why would it not be better to dump him now, try to start something new and hope to gain enough momentum to give our best players a half reason to keep on keeping on? Any better ideas?
As the saying goes you can’t make a silk purse out of a pigs ear and we have ears at cb what can the man do everything starts from top and flows down LEVY
Today is the first time since rejoining the club Bale has staked a claim for a starting spot in the team. Up until now he hasn’t deserved to start but he chamged the game when he came on. Jose cannot be blammed for the Laurel amd Hardy act at the back for their 2nd goal, that was pure Spursy.
It will have to be a Jose mastersroke to win the league cup final and he must know we are out against the first decent team we draw in the ropey
Levy cant sack Jose, the press want him to but he cant
Wonder looking at Liverpool if this is a who blinks first with levy. Can’t see them sacking klopp but if they continue to loose you never know. Knowing levy is he watching this wondering if I have to sack Jose I want someone I don’t have to pay compensation for.
Please don’t say bale, gedson and vini were all wanted by Jose don’t tell me you are that blinded by levy.
Bruce – Girl’s name meaning, origin, and popularity 🤣
we sell players and replace them we worse no matter what the level, its Levy’s way…
please name these 9 players “Jose” signed, cant wait for this..
A fair days pay off levy?????
or more likely his wife
No Bruce it’s becoming harder and harder to defend the players. What about a fair days work for a fair days pay.
Trippier, not much liked hereabouts, Atletico Madrid top of La Liga.
Eriksen not much liked, Inter Milan top of Serie A.
Walker not much liked, Man City top of the Premier League..
I always hear this excuse that Mourinho needs time to “bring in his players”. He’s signed nine players (ten if you count making Lo Celso’s deal permanent) to the tune of at least £123 million, not including loan fees. Are these not “his” players ?
There should be no more arguments that “the club need to back him”. They have backed him and look where we are.
It’s going to cost the club money if he leaves at the end of the season or if he’s sacked now, so why not just pull the trigger now and try and arrest this seemingly unstoppable slide down the table ?
He too has my loyalty and yes his selection at times is questionable. The plain truth is mistakes are killing us and whichever incumbents are in defense they are simply not consistent enough to mount a top 4 challenge.
Sacking him would mean a payout of £30m? We have no money and will never be able to compete with Citeh, Chelski, and the Mancs so 4th spot is really our only achievable goal along with a few other clubs.
Can’t understand why Dele is in the squad at all as he has been shite for over a year and adds nothing on the pitch unless it’s Marine. We need a clear out of the dross in defense who keep letting the team and fans down,
IMO, we need that top CB so Rodon and Tanganga can improve (look at Stones).
I would clear out Dier, Sanchez, Davies, Lloris(is not a leader on the pitch from where he is), Sissoko, and Winks. Of course, it would depend on the price Levy puts on their head?
Or controversially sell Harry as Liverpool did with Coutinho to improve the team with 2/3 players. and would love Sabitzer from Leipzig who will be my captain.
That’s my rant over and thanks if you read, and at least the goons are worse than we are. COYS
Bruce could be Harry’s alter ego. 😜
There is a new competition for the hopeless next season European Conference or something like that. There shall be prizes for everyone.
Just a question for the wise which now is first. The final against City or the europa Cup. If we are playing a double header either side of the final which is the more important
Good blog
At this stage we are back to hoping we finish above arsenal
If we are out of Europe next season Id fancy Jose to pull something out of the bag league wise, well he’d have to
please check “posted by”
Yet you defend ENIC, do you me a favour!!
Me mate say to me before game “Sanch & Diarohhea dem mashed fam”
why oh why Jose
Well said… Harry. Pretty much sums up my thoughts. I was never enthusiastic about Jose’s appointment – but always had that hope he retained some of that genius and could get a tune out of that tin whistle he’d been given. He had some definite ‘moments’ earlier in the season… but it’s all going very pear-shaped now. This will be the biggest test of his managerial career. Can he get some sort of ‘result’ (cup win -minimum) by the end of this season… and get some fresh-legs in for next season… or does his career finally sink in the graveyard of old ships that seems to be Tottenham right now?