Naz Majeed 

Plenty for Tottenham fans and management to ponder during the break-in football action. Here are five questions for the north London side to ponder. 

1. The Manager. What has Jose Mourinho brought to Tottenham?

The dismissal of Mauricio Pochettino was not entirely a shock to anyone who had been paying any sort of attention to Tottenham Hotspur. The back end of the 2018/19 season had been poor, to say the least, with their (ultimately unsuccessful) run to the Champions League Final masking league form that could only be described as hideous. Losing 18 games from January to November was unacceptable, even if the Argentinian was Spur’s most successful manager in the Premier League era (with finishing in the Champions League places in 4 of his 5 seasons, while only managing to do so in 2 of the previous 22).

And so appointing Jose Mourinho looked like a good bet, especially as the glaring criticism of Pochettino as a manager was the fact that he had never won anything. Mourinho’s track record was exemplary, even if his final season at Manchester United ended in ignominy. Still, ever since winning the Treble with Inter Milan, a Mourinho appointment has always been met with some degree of trepidation, with his penchant for courting controversy and the perception that he plays negative defensive football.

The idea that Mourinho only sets his teams up to defend is not an entirely accurate one, though what he does do is try to reduce the potential for mistakes, and to negate an opponent’s strengths. This is mostly manifested as being defensive, or at least reactive, rather than taking the game to the opposition, which was what brought so much (near) success for Spurs under Pochettino. But as seen above, this has been ineffective, and Spurs still have work to do to finish in the Champions League places this season.

2. The New Signings. How have Ndombele and the others fared?

Tanguy Ndombele’s signing for Tottenham was a major story, as it had been their first major acquisition for several transfer windows. The huge fee paid to Lyon raised expectations, though the player’s performances in Ligue 1 had been thrilling to watch, with his progressive passing and dangerous dribbling.

But Ndombele has played fewer League games this season than Harry Winks, Dele Alli, Moussa Sissoko, and the departed Christian Erieksen, which highlights his struggles with form and fitness. Having been publicly criticized by Mourinho for not being available enough, his time so far at Spurs has been disappointing, though he has a better mins/goal ratio than Erik Lamela, the best dribble success rate of all the midfielders in the squad, and a better tackle success rate than all the midfielders aside from Lamela who has made roughly half as many challenges in total.

Giovanni Lo Celso, meanwhile, has become a crowd favourite, with his loan spell from Real Betis quickly being made permanent after a string of impressive performances. Creating about one chance every 48 minutes, he has offered Spurs a consistent creative threat, playing either out wide, in deep midfield, or in an advanced position behind the forwards.

The other major summer signing was Ryan Sessegnon, and the early hopes of having unearthed the next Gareth Bale were quickly put to rest after various injury woes, though he is the only Spurs defender aside from Serge Aurier to have completed at least one dribble a game, and so we know his attacking instincts at least are still there to be harnessed.

Steven Bergwijn signed near the end of the January transfer window and scored on his debut against Manchester City. He has actually created fewer chances than Ndombele in his time at the club, and has a markedly lower dribble success rate, but has so far only played 5 games (for a total of 417 minutes) for Tottenham.

3. The Current Squad and Problems Faced.

For many seasons Tottenham had a settled and consistent first team, but a very thin and weak squad. Pochettino had tried to address this, but lacking in transfer funds he was largely unable to, and the result is a team that features many players who have aged as a group, and a squad that has not been sufficiently refreshed. Few, if any, of Pochettino’s regulars have improved, with the argument to be made that the likes of Jan Vertonghen, Toby Alderweireld, Dele Alli, Eric Dier, and Hugo Lloris have declined as footballers, though Lucas Moura and Son Heung-Min have definitely progressed.

The various injuries have given Mourinho a massive headache, and while the global footballing break may well have done Spurs a favour, the underlying issues of a squad that relies too heavily on Harry Kane to will only be put more into focus once their captain is back in the fold.

In addition to this, the club has drawn the ire of the general public with the recent announcement that all their non-playing staff (over 500 individuals) would see their salaries be reduced, due to the current suspension of football. Widely and correctly regarded as an entity with a large sum of money to their name (as all Premier League clubs are), Spurs’ decision could objectively be seen as making sound financial sense, but when their players are earning six-figure sums a week, it is hard to swallow and strains the relationship with their own long-suffering fans.

4. The Solutions to the Problems. What do Tottenham do?

Getting rid of Harry Kane is no real solution, as it would then introduce a new problem, having to find a way to replicate his goals and leadership. In Lucas and Son, Spurs have at least two able and willing alternatives to attacking output, and if Mourinho can consistently cajole performances out of Alli then the burden of carrying Spurs might not weigh as heavily on Kane’s back (and hamstring). It remains to be seen, however, if the squad is suited for the “Mourinho-brand” of football, and if not, which will have to cede ground.

Whatever the case, at least one backup striker needs to be signed, though it would be difficult to convince anyone of any real quality to sign for a team knowing they would play second fiddle to one of the most consistent players in Europe, who plays in every game when fit.

5. The Final Grade: C+

Spurs and Mourino still have a lot to do in the coming months, and much depends on if they can qualify for next season’s Champions League. Without the prestige of the top tier of continental football, they will be unable to attract the kind of players that can bring them back to challenging to trophies and titles, and may well yet lose their prize asset in Harry Kane, who recently spoke of his ambition and made no guarantees of staying at Tottenham just for the sake of staying.

Spurs have a talented but grossly underperforming squad, with issues at the back, in the middle, and up front, and a manager with a track record that is filled with as much strife as it has success. One way or another, someone needs to spur them on.