Igor Tudor has had a realisation about the size of the challenge that he faces at Tottenham Hotspur amid relegation fears.
The Croat has walked into the North London club at a time when they have been ravaged by an injury crisis and find themselves in the middle of a relegation battle.
The 4-1 loss in the North London derby came as a possible reality check for Tudor, who admitted that he was very angry with his side’s display against Arsenal last week.
As the 47-year-old prepares for another London derby against the Cottagers, he has made a clear statement about the size of the job on his hands.
Igor Tudor admits Tottenham’s role is more difficult than he expected
Tudor has plenty of experience in taking over clubs in crisis and making an immediate impact.
However, even he admits that the level of challenge he now faces at N17 is unlike anything he has experienced before.
When asked if the role at Tottenham was more difficult than he expected, Tudor responded (via The Guardian): “Probably, yes … I agree with you. It’s very tough … but it is how it is.
“So daily work, focus, raising in all things we need to do – physical condition, mental confidence, performance – and waiting for the [injured] players to come back.”
When asked if this is the biggest challenge of his career so far, he responded: “Probably. If I recognise the difficulties there are, probably, yes. It’s an even bigger challenge, an even bigger motivation to do this, and we do it.”
Tudor reveals Spurs need to develop a ‘mentality of a small team’
The interim Tottenham head coach insisted that the team’s style of play is not important right now, given that the club are battling for their Premier League status.
Tudor suggested that Spurs need to temporarily change their mindset to that of a small team that scrapes for every point.
He added: “It’s not looking to the style at this moment, because now it’s a question of life and death. There is not too much time to think about performance or style. Every game needs to be prepared in that way. How we can take these points, one way or the other?
“In Italy, they use the term ‘have the mentality of a small team’. That is the key, to always have motivation when you play big teams. So that’s the start, of course, and we work a lot on that. The players are aware of the situation.”