Tottenham Hotspur have recently become the first Super League club to announce the sacking of their manager, relieving Jose Mourinho of his duties on Monday morning. Although the decision may have surprised none, the timing of it has drawn criticism from fans and pundits across England, coupled with speculations suggesting a row with club bosses over Spurs’ admission in the ESL.
Here, at The 4th Official, we will discuss whether Tottenham were right to sack Jose Mourinho this week.
Did Jose Improve Tottenham’s Fortunes?
Since replacing Mauricio Pochettino during the first half of the 2019/20 campaign, Jose Mourinho has steadily instilled a more hard-working and defence-oriented philosophy in Tottenham’s game, which is hardly surprising.
However, despite the emphasis on defensive solidity, there were no signs of any real improvement in defence, with the likes of Eric Dier, Davinson Sanchez and Toby Alderweireld struggling with consistency throughout their spell under Mourinho.
On the contrary, it is the attacking department that has benefitted from the Portuguese tactician, with the offensive duo of Son Heung-Min and Harry Kane, in particular, forming a deadly partnership, especially in the first half of the campaign.
The Case Of Harry Kane & New Signings
Perhaps the biggest gift Mourinho has handed to Tottenham is the reformation of Harry Kane as a player. Under the former Chelsea boss, the English international has expanded his game to a whole new level, improving his passing and chance creation that has made him quite deadly on the counter.
It has ultimately aided runners like Son and Gareth Bale, while Kane himself hasn’t shied away from scoring goals either – 31 times in all competitions so far this campaign. It is quite an impressive tally, especially given how much Spurs have struggled as a team this season.
Apart from Kane, Mourinho was also very clever with his activity in the market. In Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, the Portuguese mastermind arguably bagged the bargain of the summer in 2020, while the addition of Joe Rodon could be useful for the club in the long run.
Lack Of Progression On The Pitch
Despite certain improvements on and off the pitch, Jose Mourinho has failed in all the other departments. His mentality of preserving leads, in particular, has hurt a quality side like Tottenham as the north London giants have been forced to just sit deep after scoring an early goal far too often.
As a result, Spurs are currently dawdling in an upper mid-table spot, having dropped points against weaker oppositions multiple times this campaign. Their fortunes haven’t improved in cup competitions either, as an early exit from the FA Cup was followed by humiliation at the hands of Dinamo Zagreb in the UEFA Europa League.
Should the Super League plan fail to come through, Tottenham, as it stands, are likely to miss out on European football altogether next season.
Therefore, from a practical stance, the decision to sack Mourinho was perhaps fair, although, with just a week left before the Carabao Cup final against Manchester City, it would perhaps been a wiser decision to retain the services of the Portuguese throughout the remainder of the campaign.
