Paul Mitchell’s arrival at Tottenham Hotspur was certainly greeted on this blog with a warm welcome, Pochettino was the up and coming Saints manager and Daniel Levy had pulled off an exceptionally shrewd double down, by then also securing the man who had a knack for sourcing the right players.
The idea of a director of recruitment just might have worked at Spurs – the strategy of having a calculating and objective pair of eyes running rule over the transfer market would save Levy from a mire of work and simultaneously prevent stem a tide of random suggestions from whoever was in the role of team coach.
Alas, the whole thing was doomed and Mitchell quit just two years into his contract, Pochettino distanced himself from the situation at the time, but Mitchell maintains that the two were close at the time and still are today.
Levy responded to the resignation by simultaneously lauding “Mitch” for helping to create a well staffed department – and invoking a 16-month notice period.
The Athletic (£) interviewed Mitchell this week and the now RB Leipzig man pointed the finger firmly at Levy for undermining Mauricio Pochettino’s chances.
The failure to balance the commitment to the two aspects of the business created a legacy that few would have wished for. Poch was popular, personable, but painfully under resourced.
It’s not unreasonable to suggest that it was the brave new world of stellar facilities that ended Mauricio. The neglect meant no churn of personnel, and so the squad festered. As Jack Pitt-Brooke who interviewed Mitchell put it, although we reached the Champions League final, the seeds were already sown for this season’s collapse.
On Wednesday night, the former director of recruitment at Spurs will welcome the remnants of the side he began to shape, as they face the side he’s currently shaping.
If Spurs fail to provide a good account of themselves against the Germans, José is unlikely to face much of a grilling from Levy, after all, it was he who brought us here.