This Mourinho at Spurs thing is going to take some getting used to. When the news broke that Mauricio Pochettino had been sacked by Spurs on Tuesday, it came as quite the shock. Yes the club had been struggling, but the Argentine manager had proven his credentials over the past five seasons.
The whole situation was made even stranger by the swift appointment of Jose Mourinho. The fit between the Portuguese and the club seems an odd one, with the pair possessing what you could consider differing philosophies.
It will certainly be interesting to see how he fares in the coming months, but his past links with rivals Chelsea has already been a topic of discussion.
During his second spell at Stamford Bridge he was asked about the prospect of managing Spurs, a club he had been linked to in the past. Mourinho would say that he couldn't do it out of respect for Chelsea.
Yes. I couldn't go.
I couldn't train in England for two years. I would not take the job because I love Chelsea supporters too much.
Unsurprisingly, this quote was brought up in his first press conference as Spurs boss this afternoon.
When asked what had changed the intervening years that convinced him to move to White Hart Lane, he was certainly unapologetic about the decision, claiming it is the way of modern football:
"I was sacked." 🤷♂
Jose Mourinho was reminded of what he said about managing Tottenham back when he was at Chelsea - but stood his ground! 😂👊
Follow all the latest live here: https://t.co/4kIZZbk1Jq pic.twitter.com/jjBhdfKwP3— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) November 21, 2019
[That was] before I was sacked! This is modern football. In relation to players, the Bosman law changed everything. In relation to us coaches, because of you [the media] we lost that stability.
The relationships are fast. Players can get tired of each other, they can get tired of the manager. Everything is faster.
When I went to Manchester United with a free mind, with a free heart. Manchester United occupied my heart even with things I did not enjoy too much.
But I loved so many things there, the fans, the people that worked at the club. But now it is about Spurs and I just hope I can be really, really happy here and make people happy and try and make sure there is not a bigger fan than myself.
If there is one person in the world who wants Spurs to win and be successful - there is not one person that wants it more than me, maybe the same but not more.
Chelsea is the past. A great past, two periods of titles, a great past, but it is the past.
