It’s been said before, but it bears repeating: Tottenham never should’ve fired Mauricio Pochettino.
And now they are too far gone. Bringing him back won’t solve any of their problems.
When Daniel Levy appointed Jose Mourinho to replace Pochettino, he began steering the club away from being an attacking team to a defensive one that relied on individual quality to score them the goals and see them through matches. It led to a prolific partnership forming between Harry Kane and Heung min-Son, and a very happy Fantasy Premier League crowd. And it worked. For about half a season.
Then the innevitable problems that a Mourinho side faces appeared, and soon after he was banished too. Since Pochettino, Spurs have sacked two more managers and had an interim and have sold every one of the players that started the Champions League final three years ago except for Heung min-Son, Hugo Lloris and Harry Kane. Club chairman Daniel Levy did his utmost to replace these players by signing young, talented, expensive players whom he hoped would develop.
Steven Bergwijn, Ndombele, Joe Rodon, and Sergio Reguilon are a few that were brought in.
But Levy did so too late. Pochettino was gone, and neither Mourinho or current manager Antonio Conte has the best track record when it comes developing players. They are coaches that win, yes, but they require players playing at their peak, and more importantly players that fit into their vision of the game. They prefer rigid, set systems focused on a non-possession, defensive, counter-attacking style, which is not what Spurs had developed into under Pochettino.
Despite not winning a trophy Spurs under Pochettino were a team. They weren’t a great one, but Pochettino made them better than their individual parts. This team peaked in that 2019 season when they reached the Champions League final, taking down an excellent Borussia Dortmund team, beating a Manchester City side in a twist-laden thriller that would’ve made Alfred Hitchcock proud, and stunning a high-flying Ajax side in Amsterdam on their way. They ultimately lost to Liverpool in an anti-climactic season-ender, but these things happen. That run to the final was hectic and they simply ran out of steam.
Immediately following that, Pochettino was asked to go again with the exact same squad. Tanguy Ndombele and Ryan Sessegnon were signed over the summer, but Levy made no reinforcements in defence. The creaking backline combined with a barely refreshed squad meant that Pochettino had a tough job motivating his squad to go again. And so, innevitably, when he should’ve been given time and money to rebuild the squad, he was given the sack instead.
Even the greatest managers and teams have problems starting again after a season where they almost win the ultimate prize. Jurgen Klopp has faced that twice with Liverpool, Chelsea are going through it right now, Man United are still recovering from their Sir Alex Ferguson success, even Man City under Pep have had their fair share of teething problems.
It is a natural part of the footballing cycle, and it is during these periods that an owner’s decisions are key.
Levy now finds himself in a pickle. He cannot sack Conte having backed him in the transfer windown last summer, bringing in Ivan Perisic, Yves Bissouma and Richarlison.
Only one of those players (Richarlison), it can be argued is a Spurs player.
Perisic is in his thirties and Bissouma is another defensive midfielder in a team already filled with them, and one sorely lacking creativity in the centre of the pitch. Dejan Kulusevski and Rodrigo Bentancur are key players out injured, yet, even with them in the side, Tottenham only look marginally better.
They are progressively playing worse football. Their results this season have been much better than their performances on the pitch would suggest, and while this is often the line that pundit’s toe when talking about “champion teams,” Tottenham fans will be concerned at the lack of imrpovement and the tepid football. They look stale, directionless and divided.
And it seems unlikely they win a trophy this year.
On paper, Tottenham should be an attractive project for players. They are a profitable team with steady revenue, they’re based in London, are continually in Europe, have a blinging new stadium and one of the best players in the world playing for them with one of the best coaches in the world managing them.
But right now, they don’t look anything more than a top six team. They haven’t yet won any silverware for ages, and they continue to look like a “nearly” side. This is a club that needs strong performances on the pitch and consistent business in the transfer market if there is any hope for them to compete for trophies.
Worse, Arsenal have now overtaken them as the better club in North London an FA Cup in tow, and potentially the Premier League title to follow this year. Having fallen far behind Tottenham in recent years, Arsenal are back with a vengeance and performances and results indicate that their strategy to back and keep faith with one manager was a sound one. They haven’t had it all their way – some signings were huge disasters (Nicolas Pepe), but it appears they have a vision that they were chasing, and it is starting to bear fruit.
With Pochettino it would’ve taken some time – every team in transition goes through growing pains – but it can be argued that had Levy stuck with him, Spurs would be better off today than where they currently find themselves.
On the surface, it doesn’t look so bad. They are fifth, in the FA cup fourth round, and in the Champions League knockouts. Their rivals for the top four – Liverpool and Chelsea – are struggling. Newcastle, Man United, two teams ahead of them in the table, lack squad depth. There are still lots of points to play for, and Spurs could finish as high third if they are able to gather some momentum towards the end of the season.
But if Spurs fail to qualify for next year’s Champions League and get knocked out of both cup competitions – all of which are highly likely, this season would be an utter disaster. To call Tottenham a shambles might be an exaggeration, but it is no joke to say that they are one step away from it.