Jose had two jobs to do upon his arrival at Spurs. One was to shake the up complacency and to the shoo away the stagnation, the second was to make Spurs great again.
The latter required the players to feel and look more at home on the pitch, something that had been absent for the bulk of this season, under his predecessor.
Uh, oh Uncomfortable Spurs Face Swap
Mourinho has assumed various tactical identities in his various managerial spells – he is not just a dour pragmatist as sometimes painted – and this Spurs team should elicit a more attacking version. Although it’s early in his tenure in North London, and so this is a broad overview, there are a few noticeable features of Spurs under his leadership.
Some good stuff on the old youtube.. Problem is wading through all the rubbish videos to find the gems.. Interesting stuff.. Maureens done well so far.
I disagree a bit on the “playing to the strengths of his players” part. When he had Sissoko at RM I agreed with him. Sissoko is a disaster at holding midfielder, yet he was put there against Manure and the well prepared Ole attacked him relentlessly. It was Sissoko who again, for the 10th+ time this season, was ball watching and let his mark (Rashford) run by him for the first goal. If he plays Sissoko and Winks at DM against Bayern the result is going to be very ugly.
Your point about giving Sanchez cover is spot on. I have been pounding Poch on this for years – when Sanchez plays for Colombia, he always has a holding mid placed directly in front of him to protect him. My concern with Sanchez still in this system is that he is still ball watching and excruciatingly slow to come out and cover for all of Aurier’s constant mistakes. I would prefer to have Toby on that side as he is the second best in the world (to Ramos) at covering for his fullbacks. Toby would have been much closer and either blocked that shot or at least protected the near post (another thing he is the best at).
I don’t go to away games anymore either.😊
Is that why you only go to away games? Oh. You don’t. NEW Special moments to be had at the new stadium in the future if you’re interested.
Very good insight.
I’m apologise for p%ssing on your Burnley bonfire.
Special moments ended for me when WHL was demolished and an NFL/events arena was built in its place before I could even get over for one last goodbye. But it seems my point of view can’t be expressed unless at the correct time for others.
No it’s clear there was bad performances under Maurice. That not being denied. That was inevitable. Most on here do know what’s going on but there’s a Kool aid style Jose revolution going on by what I’ve seen.
Unfortunately I suspect there is considerable truth in what you are saying. I severely doubt that Mourinho’s appointment will herald any kind of epiphany on ENIC or Levy’s part, regarding commitment to winning, by financially backing the building/re-building of the team.
The ENIC blueprint has not changed one iota. I suspect the only real ambition being shown is in the appointment itself. Whereby a serial winner, Mourinho, has been procured at uncommon cost, by ENIC’s standards, to the tune of making him the second highest paid manager in the EPL.
This in itself is laudable, however if you then fail to back up Mourinho, with sufficient funds, in the same way that Poch was hamstrung by chronic ‘penny pinching’, then Mourinho too will ultimately be thwarted, even if his superior tactical acumen, might lead us to a pot or two. Back the damn manager!
You’re acting like you and a tiny handful of enlightened others, are the only ones who know the truth about ENIC. That anyone who derives an ounce of pleasure from a good performance and wonder goal, is a deluded sheep.
You talk about narratives yet gloss over woeful showings under Poch against Newcastle, Watford, Brighton, Everton and Sheffield Utd, because they don’t fit yours.
After nineteen largely barren years many of us get it about ENIC, but you sound like a broken record of negativity. There’s a time and a place, and this weekend wasn’t it.
Some of us just want to make the best of our situation by enjoying special moments like Saturday. We can’t be winning trophies and investing heavily in the squad every week.
Good analysis and clearly an accurate anatomy of the subtle tactical changes that Mourinho (and one suspects his assistant, Joao Sacramento) have introduced. The faster, more penetrative, transition of play is particularly welcome to all those, myself included, who used to gnash their teeth/pull their hair out, at Poch’s dire, rote, ‘playing out from the back’, which explicitly prevented quick transition, except on the counter-attack.
It is almost impossible to achieved real penetration, against teams that sit deep, with slow playing out from the back. In fact if opposing teams relentlessly press you high up, in your own area, before dropping deep, it can be almost suicidal. So called ‘Route One’ has always had real game tactical application, if applied judiciously, rather than aimlessly, or as a footballing ‘raison d’etre’, a la Wimbledon of old. It doesn’t allow defences to get set, it can swiftly vary the point of attack and it can turn more static defenders faced with faster attackers.
The other factor which Mourinho has employed very cleverly, is playing to the strengths of his players. These adjustments befit the mind of a master tactician, which Mourinho is, as opposed to a great man motivator, which Poch was, until he became de-motivated himself, almost certainly occasioned by ENIC’s lack of commitment to embracing his vision for building the team.
In this regard, Mourinho has deployed a number of players, especially all four of his key front men, in areas which allows them the optimum positioning to showcase their talents. This takes both a shrewd understanding of tactics and an ability to identify the strengths of one’s players. Defensively, Sanchez, Aurier and Dier also, have suddenly looked ‘better players’. How is this possible? By playing them in areas best suited to their strengths and reducing occasions where they are put in situations that expose their weaknesses.
I was intrigued by how secure Sanchez is suddenly looking, especially at the weekend. To analyse why, look no further than how Mourinho targeted him in the Europa League final, Man Utd versus Ajax. He denied the ball to De Licht and made Sanchez play out from the back. Now Sanchez is being employed purely defensively and playing narrower, where for the most part attackers can’t run at him. As a result he is suddenly looking a commanding, physical, CB, dominant in the air and not exposed on the floor. The subtle adjustments of a master tactician.
One fella on the wireless restored some faith, he was passionately explaining how Mourinho getting top 4 will be the worst thing for Spurs cos that’s what this is all about for Levy. There’s no change, no ambition. Just financial targets for ENIC. Itl be more Sissokos and Jannsens etc, more of the perpetual “different” way. He was bang on. The hymn sheet is out already and Jose is well and truly singing. The majority have been sucked in again. How? Blind desperation? Maybe. Levys timing for the appointment was no accident. He knew the fixtures were gimmes and it would be the perfect time to start the next expectation management stage. Lucky for him, nobody’s interested in the whimpering loss at Utd cos mighty Burnley(who Dyche described as “depleted”) were vanquished and that would never had happened under Pochs collapse…..*except the 4-0 vs Palace and 3-1 vs Villa.