It Looks Like Mourinho Is Trying To Reinvent Himself At Spurs But The ‘I Told You So’ Backlash Will Never Be Far Behind

Tottenham Hotspur fans pretty much know what to expect from our new head coach Jose Mourinho – ‘The Special One’ doesn’t lack in confidence or arrogance but he does have the trophy haul to back that up.

The fanbase are split on the appointment. Some see it as a significant sign from Daniel Levy that he now wants to win something and our focus has become short term rather than big picture (especially given Mourinho’s tendency to implode after two years) and we’ll see an up kick in spending and ambitions. Others, not so much, whether that be attitude, playing style or a tendency for the focus to only ever be on Mourinho, often at the expense of the club itself.

"This club will always be his home – this training ground will always be his training ground, he can come whenever he wants. The door is always open for him." ????????https://t.co/iz4jpIwBqm

— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) November 21, 2019

Hindsight may prove to be a wonderful thing here as we look back in a year or two, but I don’t think there can be much debate about whether or not Jose is trying to change the narrative given his opening rounds of interviews and the topics he spoke about.

‘The Special One’ appears to be attempting to become ‘The Humble One’ and win people over with a new found philosophy, approach and respectfulness – more akin to his more original cheeky manner of talking.

"I arrive, I wear the pyjamas of the club and even sleep in them!" ????????

Jose Mourinho says his past allegiances don't mean anything and he is a "club man" following his move to Spurs: https://t.co/4kIZZbk1Jq pic.twitter.com/lJ8x8SHxp8

— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) November 21, 2019

Praising Mauricio Pochettino for his groundwork over the last few years, promising to respect that groundwork and not make ‘big changes’, promising to learn from his own mistakes (that he accepted responsibility for) whilst not hiding from the fact he will undoubtedly make ‘new mistakes’ along the way and even talking about a ‘vision’ to imply longer term thinking as well as little soundbites like wearing ‘the pyjamas of the club’.

It’s certainly a refreshed Mourinho, but the bottom line is, he’ll never win some over given his past and he’ll win fewer over given the manner of change from Levy and Poch’s treatment.

If it’s a success, the gamble will certainly be a journey and despite the support he’ll get (he’s now our manager, that’s how it works), rightly or wrongly, the ‘I told you so’ brigade won’t take long to get into gear at the first sign of trouble.

There are certainly those who feel Levy has dodged a bullet here given how high profile an appointment this is, in two or three years, we’ll see if he’s pulled off a masterstroke.

Previous Article:

Mourinho’s Appointment Surely Only Raises More Questions At Spurs – It’s Chalk & Cheese