As the song goes “He’s magic, you know, Mauricio Pochettino”. Well the magic seems to have run out in Tottenham as Daniel Levy has decided it’s time for a change. The Manager who led Spurs to their first Champions League Final; Only 6 months ago, has paid the price for Spurs poor form this season. Yesterday morning Jose Mourinho was announced as his successor. Ultimately I think it is a decision that will come back to haunt Levy and Tottenham.
Champions League Finalists
Pochettino was manager for 5 and a half years. In that time he changed the dynamic, the culture and the ambitions of the club. Before his tenure, you would of been laughed at if you said Spurs would play in a Champions League Final, why? well they were regularly playing in the Europa League and now he leaves them as Champions League regulars. But what makes his achievements over the last five and a half years more special? The fact he has achieved so much with hardly any investment in the squad. He has also had to deal with playing home games at Wembley while the new stadium was built. Then subsequently had to deal with them moving into their new stadium.
No Incomings
There is no hiding from the fact that Spurs results haven’t been good enough at all this season; Following on from the back end of last season. The Champions League Final was an overachievement for an already declining squad; A Squad that was not strengthened between the end of January 2018 to the summer of 2019. Pochettino had already achieved so much with the same squad and youngsters from the academy; He was just crying out for backing in the transfer window to take Spurs to the next step. That ultimately didn’t arrive, Levy feeling it wasn’t the right time to invest in the squad. As a result performances dwindled, results dwindled and in the end the relationship between Pochettino and Levy dwindled until Levy felt he had no other choice but to part ways.
Pochettino: Man Manager and Master Tactician
There is no denying the fact that Mauricio Pochettino is a very good man manager; In his time alone in England at Southampton and Tottenham, he has brought the most out of average players and squads. It it is quite telling that when Pochettino was at Southampton; A number of their players made up the England squad such as Nathaniel Clyne, Adam Lallana, Luke Shaw and Rickie Lambert. When Pochettino was at Tottenham; A number of their players made up the England squad such as Danny Rose, Harry Winks, Dele Alli, Eric Dier and Harry Kane. This is a massive testament to Pochettino and what he has achieved at both clubs with different briefs and challenging circumstances. Pochettino’s achievements at Spurs; one 5th place finish, one 4th place finish, two 3rd place finishes and a 2nd place finish. They were also runners up in the League Cup and Champions League. It’s these achievements which made him have admirers from Europe’s biggest clubs including Real Madrid and Bayern Munich. These achievements alone should of earned him the right to rebuild the squad and take Spurs to the next level by winning trophies.
Return of the “Special One”
The appointment of Jose Mourinho by Daniel Levy is an obvious one; Mourinho has won trophies wherever he has a gone, in the biggest and best leagues and competitions; He has a winning pedigree. It could be an absolute masterstroke to bring in a manager who can almost guarantee winning a trophy but let’s not forget the transfer window is closed and the Spurs squad is on the decline; There won’t be any overnight success at Spurs. Mourinho wherever he has gone has spent millions of pounds of players to build a squad worthy of winning trophies; You would expect this time to be no different. However Daniel Levy averages spending £5.5million pounds every Transfer Window – which in these days is a youth player! You would expect Mourinho to have money because he wouldn’t of agreed to take the job if there wasn’t any available. which begs the question, why didn’t Pochettino get money and backing in the transfer market?
I personally believe the sacking of Pochettino will haunt Spurs, a man who changed the culture, the outlook and the fortunes of club and took them of the brink of glory; a man who had a great relationship with the fans and was held in high regard; To then be replaced by an ex Chelsea manager will not stand with some hardcore fans but the appointment could be a masterstroke; It could lead the club into a trophy laden glory era, It could also backfire. All I know is ‘Poch’ should of had a chance to rebuild his house in order to reap the benefits. He still remains one of Europe’s hottest managers and he could go on to make Spurs fans think, “What If..?”
