Jose Mourinho to Tottenham…What?

Is this the strangest hire in Premier League history or does it make perfect sense? Can it be both? It is incredible that just six months after leading Spurs to the Champions League Final, by far the club’s highest profile moment in its history, manager Mauricio Pochettino is out.

I’m not so sure he’s to blame for where Spurs are right now, stuck in 14th place after 12 games. The summer transfer window clearly didn’t go how he wanted. While Spurs did sign new players, it’s uncertain whether they were what Poch wanted given that they were left clearly over-staffed in some positions and under-staffed in others.

In any case, Mourinho is in. It’s an odd marriage: a club allergic to trophies and a manager addicted to them, a manager most associated with one of his new employer’s biggest rivals.

Mourinho tenures never end well, but Spurs will hope that they’re able to not only salvage this season, but their aspirations to be one of Europe’s elite clubs before things inevitably go sour.

I wanted to share a few thoughts on how Jose may setup Spurs, what players will benefit (and not) from his arrival, and why it will or won’t work.

Mourinho is a bit of a relic in modern soccer, where the 4-3-3 and variations on it have suddenly become the standard for most top-level clubs while back-3 formations have also surged in popularity. Jose’s favored 4-2-3-1 still persists (Bayern Munich and Lampard’s Chelsea, at times, being perhaps the highest-profile current examples).

Spurs have often tried to play 4-2-3-1 in recent years, but it hasn’t worked particularly well with their squad. In an effort to get their best attackers on the field, the result is either Dele Alli, Christian Ericksen, Erik Lamela or (recently) Giovani Lo Celso, all of who are best as #10s having to play on the right. In theory, three of them could all play together in a more narrow attacking 3, but this would require the sacrifice of Son Heung-min, who has been Spurs’ best player over the last year on the left wing. 

If Mourinho is to implement this shape, he’s either going to need a lot more from one of those #10s, or Lucas Moura could start to see more time on the right side.

The issue with both of those ideas is that Mourinho is adamant his wide midfielders track back to help defend (a constant sticking point between him and Eden Hazard during Mourniho’s second spell at Chelsea). Son is a natural forward (which he showed last year in Kane’s absence) but has adapted well to a more out-and-out wing role, and his selfless attitude and high work rate mean he should be capable of whatever is asked of him. Lucas likes to stay forward, and neither Eriksen nor Lamela are known for their defensive contributions. Alli and Lo Celso have both showed the ability to play slightly deeper, and thus it will be interesting to see how Mourinho uses them.

All of this could present a phenomenal opportunity for Ryan Sessegnon. He’s become the forgotten man this season at Spurs after his deadline-day transfer from Fulham, yet to make an appearance due to lingering hamstring issues that date back to the end of last season. Mourinho general wants his fullbacks to be defense-first (this was a massive problem at ManUnited) and given the other options I don’t see Sessegnon playing LB for Mourinho. However, he could be a phenomenal fit in a wide midfield/wing position. Mourinho should love his defensive instincts and strong work rate at both ends of the field. Few players stand to benefit more from The Special One’s arrival, and Sessegnon’s imminent return from injury could be perfectly timed 

Speaking of fullbacks needing to defend, it’s about to be sink or swim time for Serge Aurier. His recklessness and propensity for defensive lapses are well known at this point, and Mourinho will not hesitate to bench him if he can’t clean it up. Kyle Walker-Peters finds himself in a prime position, and if he impresses Mourinho he could be seeing a lot more playing time sooner rather than later.

In many ways the most important part of any Mourinho team is the midfield pivot, where Spurs should be in more than adequate shape. Harry Winks and Tanguy Ndombele are the assumed starters there, providing a good combination of mobility, passing range and muscle. Ndombele has slipped a bit since his strong start, but there’s no better coach than Mourinho to get the best out of a player like him.

Moussa Sissoko (who could find himself at right-mid as well) and Eric Dier provide cover, with Dier able to of course play center-back as well. It will be interesting to watch and see who Mourinho goes with as his preferred two. Conventional wisdom at this point would say Toby Alderweireld and Davinson Sanchez, but perhaps Mourinho will opt for the experience of Alderweireld and Jan Vertonghen’s parternship instead. 

Bottom line, Mourniho is going to play whatever lineup gets results. He’s not going to favor anyone because of past contributions. The only player who’s spot seems guaranteed is Harry Kane simply because he’s the only true striker on the roster.

Which brings us to January, Mourinho’s first opportunity to make changes to the squad.

The bad news is, according to The Guardian, that Spurs (surprise!) have no money to spend. Jose is not a man who enjoys being told no, so what can he do?

First off, I think he has to try to sell Eriksen. The drama over the club’s failure to sell the Danish captain last summer with one year left on his contract and no agreement on an extension forthcoming has loomed over the team all season. The issue is that Eriksen would most likely prefer to let his contract run out and then be able to sign with whomever he wants, rather than allowing Spurs to offload him to wherever is willing to give them something. Either they need to get it over with or Mourinho has to figure out a way to convince Eriksen to give his all for the club while he’s still there (I wouldn’t be on that). If Eriksen is still at the club in February, it wouldn’t be any surprise for Mourinho to freeze him out.

Perhaps more importantly, selling Eriksen would allow a little wiggle room to try to add players.

A name that, of course, keeps getting floated around is Zlatan Ibrahimovic. He’s a free agent following his announced departure from LA Galaxy and thus doesn’t require a transfer fee. Now, he’d have to accept Spurs’ strict wage structure and having to fight for playing time (something he has hasn’t had to do arguably since his Barcelona days). Interest in Zlatan seems to be primarily be coming from Italy. But would playing for a mid-table Serie A team, even as a guaranteed starter, do it for Zlatan? Imagine if Spurs won their first trophy in ages with Mourinho and Zlatan. Neither one would ever shut up about it; it would feed their egos like few other things could. I bet you could sell Zlatan on that idea.

So how does this end? Like any Mourinho team I’m sure Spurs will be defensively solid. They have no shortage of defensive talent on this team to do it. They also shouldn’t have any trouble scoring goals as long as Kane and Son stay fit. Mourinho won three trophies and finished second in the Premier League with Man United in 2016/17, certainly he can be more than competent with Spurs. Worst case, friction develops between Mourinho and the squad, they get marginally better but don’t challenge for Top 4 and get bounced from the Champions League. Best case, there’s an immediate bump from the change, the players buy into the system, and Spurs are in a heated battle with Chelsea and Leicester for the final two Champions League positions.

However it goes, it’s going to be entertaining.

Spurs have 10 games remaining in 2019, including Manchester United on December 4th, the return to Bayern Munich on the 11th, and Chelsea on the 22nd.

In the words of Terrell Owens, get your popcorn ready.