3 Questions to Mourinho
3 Questions to Mourinho
Hello all, it is Wednesday, a gloriously sunny day so I'd better fill the pond for the frogs. but before I do, Tottenham Tittle Tattle will bring you 3 questions for José Mourinho and some discussion around them.
Tottenham boss José Mourinho sent his team out to win our first game in the last seven matches in all competitions, Harry Kane back on the scoresheet, no goals conceded, there were plenty of positives to take out of this game, not just the result.
I say his team, but these aren't his players. he has however had a chance to put three weeks work into them and be able to work on defensive solidity, without which we wouldn't have been winning many games.
It really is crazy that some fans are condemning him already and calling for Pochettino to return. These are the same players who had given up on Poch and weren't getting the results for him anymore.
I disagreed with his sacking, I always feel the players are the ones who should be changed but it is what it is and we have a new manager.
Every fan without fail should be behind the new boss, whether you like the football or not.
A new boss wants a new style and that takes time. Liverpool didn't immediately improve under Brendan Rogers, it took them a season before they finished second in the league, they didn't immediately improve under Klopp either, he arrived there in 2015.
Why then is José Mourinho expected to have turned us into winners in a couple of months!
Mourinho is sorting us out defensively, then we can become a better attacking force.
He has a free reign this season, by that I mean he will be here next season even if Spurs don't qualify for the Champions League. Daniel Levy gave him that assurance before he agreed to take on the job.
Rome wasn't built in a day and if fans want Spurs to win a trophy, then they have to allow a serial winner to build a squad in his image.
There were negatives in the game of course and the final question of the post match press conference was negative.
A French report suggests there has been a rift between Mourinho and Ndombele and that is the agenda Football London work towards.
I remember the French reporting that Hugo Lloris has a release clause in his contract when they were running stories trying to get him out of Tottenham. The French press can't be trusted to write the truth, only stories that fit their current wishes, mind you the same can be said for our press.
Ndombele isn't playing therefore there must be an argument, no, he just isn't good enough at the moment.
According to the London agenda, this is a saga.
No, they want it to be to write about something, but it is simply a player from French football who thinks he deserves a place by divine right, just as Etienne Capoue did when coming for Ligue 1, and sulks when he finds out he actually has to fight for a place.
It isn't something hee has had to do before and before lockdown, his lazy performances clearly showed he didn't want to.
That sulking simply shows he has the wrong mental attitude yet fickle fans now think he is some kind of superstar.
His performances and attitude were highlighted, if you remember, by that video of him against Wolves where at one point he got out the way of the Wolves player running with the ball, which led to their winning goal.
When you have shown that pathetic attitude, it is up to you to change it.
It is up to you to work your socks off in training to prove you are worthy of a chance.
As yet, he hasn't proved that.
I am amazed people who want to think of themselves as in the media business can't understand a basic comment from a manager and the psychology behind it. No wonder they seem not to know what they are talking about.
Stop and think why a coach has said something for goodness sake, what is he trying to achieve, what does he want the outcome to be?
Mourinho praises a players effort in training, therefore he must be a certainty to start.
No.
Player starts at a low point and has to build trust. Player shows commitment and improves his training, starts showing the right attitude.
Manager has a word with player,pats him on the back, explains if he keeps this up he'll get his chance, just be patient.
Tell press player is working well in training, his attitude is good.
Player knows the score, you don't train for a few sessions and bingo, you prove over a period of time and for a substitute appearance the game situation has to be right to enable the boss to bring you on.
That will be different in the manager's mind than the players mind. With points at stake it may be a cautious approach and wait for a less decisive time to bring the player on.
The player of course will want to be in the thick of it.
Some are trying to make a mountain out of a molehill.
The solution lies with Ndombele.
When the time comes that he does get on the field, he has to show his worth and put in a performance that says, I can be relied upon and I'm worth a starting place.
He has to do that if he starts or comes off the bench.
If he doesn't prove in training that his laziness has gone, and it is his responsibility to prove that, not the manager's to give him a chance to see, then he doesn't deserve minutes.
Tottenham are not a charity.
Yet again we have a situation that boils down to mentality.
You all know my thoughts, from a coaching background, on how easy that is to solve.
Anyway, let's leave the journalists clickbait agendas and focus on the West Ham victory.
After the dubious penalty against Manchester United, and if you saw the video I posted on Twitter of Man Utd penalties this season you'll see what I mean by dubious, they all dive, three points were vital.
Spurs should have beat United. We had Harry Kane trying to return to match fitness while we tried to secure three points. Both achievements wee within our grasp.
Ever since Harry Redknapp, our game plan seems to be try not to concede a goal until half-time and then play to win the game in the second half.
The set up vs United was obvious.
Do not concede and try to nick a goal, then push for one second half.
We did score and thus it was hold onto what we have and try to nick a second with the front four again, so the same tactics as the first half.
Quite frankly we should have scored to wrap the game up despite the ref doing all he could to award them penalties.
The West Ham set up was the same again, you'll see it in all our games until the end of the season as we continue to develop our defensive solidity.
These two games have shown how important it has been for José to have time working with the team.
You can't change much without a pre-season.
During the season you are simply preparing for the next game, specific things you need to work on rather than your own style of play.
A new manager coming in will have a positive initial affect, but things usually level until you get a pre-season to change to more what you want, a chance to get your principles across.
Spurs have been more defensively solid.
The back four have been decided upon for the remainder of the season and then we'll see if we can get an upgrade on Aurier.
Eric Dier made it clear he wanted to play central defence, which he grew up with in Portugal and his experience in defensive midfield for Sporting and ourselves can only help him to become a very good defender for us.
Our fans called for him to be sold and complained about him being offered a contract extension. Those talks will, of course, have revolved around whether he would be played at centre-back or not.
Davinson Sanchez and Eric Dier look to be the first choice centre-back pairing now with Alderweireld and Tanganga as the back-ups, we'll see when Tanganga is fit.
Ben Davies is the left-back because Ryan Sessegnon isn't ready to be a full-back in the Premier League regularly yet, but he is the future solution.
Going forward them, that give us a back three of Sessegnon, Dier and Sanchez with a right-back to sort out after the season.
Will the future be a Tanganga and Dier partnership?
And there is the reason why Harry Winks and not Tanguy Ndombele came on, the game required and Mourinho's historical tactics at Chelsea were to defend a lead.
Having shown his laziness in defending against Wolves, would you rather trust Ndombele or Winks with that role?
Winks clearly as he'll stay and defend where, Ndombele would rather be pushing forward.
If Ndombele wants to change that thinking then he has to show it is training, then show it in a game when given the chance.
Had we not been winning you may have seen a different substitution, shame agenda driven journalists haven't that foresight.
From Ndombele to Kane.
I was delighted to see Harry Kane score for several reasons.
Firstly, even though he was dead tired, his mind was still focussed on the job at hand, fatigue causes mistakes but he made no mistake.
Secondly, I am critical of our approach at the end of games where, since the days of Robbie Keane, we couldn't seem to care less whether we scored a third, fourth or fifth late in the game.
That leads to complacency, it leads to missing crucial chances at important times in other games because players have not trained themselves to be clinical in all situations.
Scoring a goal, when the opportunity arises, when you are 3-0 up is just as important as when you are 1-0 up. Our mental approach in those situations has sucked for 15 years or more, it's ingrained, it has to change.-
It won't because we don't do the mental work required. We don't pay attention to the details, some details, but not others.
A winning approach is to constantly look to improve in EVERY area, not just some.
At these aforementioned times in games, it is almost a training exercise.
Far, far to often we choose the wrong option or play a poor pass.
That wouldn't happen if we had the determination to score in those situations that Manchester City have.
Harry Kane showed the kind of clinical finishing we need at that time.
Thirdly, after an injury and a long lay off, it is important to get the first goal under your belt,especially when these clueless journalists start questioning you.
Mourinho now has a further 9 days to work on the defensive organisation and attacking structure.
We have a corner routine we have clearly worked on, we haven't mastered a man coming in at the back post yet though.
There are links to further articles to read and a simple Click To Tweet a José Mourinho quote so do take advantage.
Enjoy the sunshine this week folks.
According to the London agenda, this is a saga.
No, they want it to be to write about something, but it is simply a player from French football who thinks he deserves a place by divine right, just as Etienne Capoue did when coming for Ligue 1, and sulks when he finds out he actually has to fight for a place.
It isn't something hee has had to do before and before lockdown, his lazy performances clearly showed he didn't want to.
That sulking simply shows he has the wrong mental attitude yet fickle fans now think he is some kind of superstar.
His performances and attitude were highlighted, if you remember, by that video of him against Wolves where at one point he got out the way of the Wolves player running with the ball, which led to their winning goal.
When you have shown that pathetic attitude, it is up to you to change it.
It is up to you to work your socks off in training to prove you are worthy of a chance.
As yet, he hasn't proved that.
I am amazed people who want to think of themselves as in the media business can't understand a basic comment from a manager and the psychology behind it. No wonder they seem not to know what they are talking about.
Stop and think why a coach has said something for goodness sake, what is he trying to achieve, what does he want the outcome to be?
Mourinho praises a players effort in training, therefore he must be a certainty to start.
No.
Player starts at a low point and has to build trust. Player shows commitment and improves his training, starts showing the right attitude.
Manager has a word with player,pats him on the back, explains if he keeps this up he'll get his chance, just be patient.
Tell press player is working well in training, his attitude is good.
Player knows the score, you don't train for a few sessions and bingo, you prove over a period of time and for a substitute appearance the game situation has to be right to enable the boss to bring you on.
That will be different in the manager's mind than the players mind. With points at stake it may be a cautious approach and wait for a less decisive time to bring the player on.
The player of course will want to be in the thick of it.
Some are trying to make a mountain out of a molehill.
The solution lies with Ndombele.
When the time comes that he does get on the field, he has to show his worth and put in a performance that says, I can be relied upon and I'm worth a starting place.
He has to do that if he starts or comes off the bench.
If he doesn't prove in training that his laziness has gone, and it is his responsibility to prove that, not the manager's to give him a chance to see, then he doesn't deserve minutes.
Tottenham are not a charity.
Yet again we have a situation that boils down to mentality.
You all know my thoughts, from a coaching background, on how easy that is to solve.
Anyway, let's leave the journalists clickbait agendas and focus on the West Ham victory.
THBN QUESTION 1: José, how important were the three points today?
"The three points of course are very, very important for us, crucial for us.
"Without these three points we would be really in a position in the table where we had to wait for many, many, many results until the end, very important these three points."
After the dubious penalty against Manchester United, and if you saw the video I posted on Twitter of Man Utd penalties this season you'll see what I mean by dubious, they all dive, three points were vital.
Spurs should have beat United. We had Harry Kane trying to return to match fitness while we tried to secure three points. Both achievements wee within our grasp.
Ever since Harry Redknapp, our game plan seems to be try not to concede a goal until half-time and then play to win the game in the second half.
The set up vs United was obvious.
Do not concede and try to nick a goal, then push for one second half.
We did score and thus it was hold onto what we have and try to nick a second with the front four again, so the same tactics as the first half.
Quite frankly we should have scored to wrap the game up despite the ref doing all he could to award them penalties.
The West Ham set up was the same again, you'll see it in all our games until the end of the season as we continue to develop our defensive solidity.
THBN QUESTION 2: "How important was this clean sheet?
"The clean sheet obviously was important for the confidence of the team at that level.
"Before the lockdown we were conceding goals after goals after goals and in these two matches we concede one goal on a penalty, so big improvements at that level.
"Then of course we played against a team with a coach that has a lot of experience. He knows how to organize the team defensively.
"The team was was really strong and compact and was difficult for us to find spaces. In the second half, as we could imagine, with a little bit of fatigue the game breaks a little bit more.
"We had space and then i'm really happy for Harry to be in the face of the keeper and to score his goal. Very important also for his confidence."
These two games have shown how important it has been for José to have time working with the team.
You can't change much without a pre-season.
During the season you are simply preparing for the next game, specific things you need to work on rather than your own style of play.
A new manager coming in will have a positive initial affect, but things usually level until you get a pre-season to change to more what you want, a chance to get your principles across.
Spurs have been more defensively solid.
The back four have been decided upon for the remainder of the season and then we'll see if we can get an upgrade on Aurier.
Eric Dier made it clear he wanted to play central defence, which he grew up with in Portugal and his experience in defensive midfield for Sporting and ourselves can only help him to become a very good defender for us.
Our fans called for him to be sold and complained about him being offered a contract extension. Those talks will, of course, have revolved around whether he would be played at centre-back or not.
Davinson Sanchez and Eric Dier look to be the first choice centre-back pairing now with Alderweireld and Tanganga as the back-ups, we'll see when Tanganga is fit.
Ben Davies is the left-back because Ryan Sessegnon isn't ready to be a full-back in the Premier League regularly yet, but he is the future solution.
Going forward them, that give us a back three of Sessegnon, Dier and Sanchez with a right-back to sort out after the season.
Will the future be a Tanganga and Dier partnership?
THBN QUESTION 3: You had more options today José with Dele and Lucas Moura both back, how important is that for you and for the team in general?
"It allowed me to have two attacking players on the bench at the same time. also Giovani Lo Celso was in condition to play from the start so our bench today was rich.
"It was a bench full of full of good options and it helped me to try to give more intensity.
"Then when we were winning, I had a player like Harry Winks on the bench to bring some stability to the team. Good squads are very, very important."
And there is the reason why Harry Winks and not Tanguy Ndombele came on, the game required and Mourinho's historical tactics at Chelsea were to defend a lead.
Having shown his laziness in defending against Wolves, would you rather trust Ndombele or Winks with that role?
Winks clearly as he'll stay and defend where, Ndombele would rather be pushing forward.
If Ndombele wants to change that thinking then he has to show it is training, then show it in a game when given the chance.
Had we not been winning you may have seen a different substitution, shame agenda driven journalists haven't that foresight.
From Ndombele to Kane.
I was delighted to see Harry Kane score for several reasons.
Firstly, even though he was dead tired, his mind was still focussed on the job at hand, fatigue causes mistakes but he made no mistake.
Secondly, I am critical of our approach at the end of games where, since the days of Robbie Keane, we couldn't seem to care less whether we scored a third, fourth or fifth late in the game.
That leads to complacency, it leads to missing crucial chances at important times in other games because players have not trained themselves to be clinical in all situations.
Scoring a goal, when the opportunity arises, when you are 3-0 up is just as important as when you are 1-0 up. Our mental approach in those situations has sucked for 15 years or more, it's ingrained, it has to change.-
It won't because we don't do the mental work required. We don't pay attention to the details, some details, but not others.
A winning approach is to constantly look to improve in EVERY area, not just some.
At these aforementioned times in games, it is almost a training exercise.
Far, far to often we choose the wrong option or play a poor pass.
That wouldn't happen if we had the determination to score in those situations that Manchester City have.
Harry Kane showed the kind of clinical finishing we need at that time.
Thirdly, after an injury and a long lay off, it is important to get the first goal under your belt,especially when these clueless journalists start questioning you.
Mourinho now has a further 9 days to work on the defensive organisation and attacking structure.
We have a corner routine we have clearly worked on, we haven't mastered a man coming in at the back post yet though.
There are links to further articles to read and a simple Click To Tweet a José Mourinho quote so do take advantage.
Enjoy the sunshine this week folks.
COYS
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