Former Tottenham midfielder Jermaine Jenas has praised Daniel Levy for acting quickly in replacing Mauricio Pochettino with Jose Mourinho last month.
Tottenham have picked up their form considerably since Mourinho took over as head coach, managing to win four of their five Premier League games.
The results have resurrected Tottenham’s season and given the Lilywhites a massive chance of getting back into the top four.
Jenas lavished praise at Mourinho for helping Spurs rediscover their attacking edge and backed him to solve the team’s defensive frailties in due course.
In his column for BBC Sport, Jenas wrote, “We have seen a huge improvement in results plus team and individual performances – such as with Dele Alli, for example.
“Mourinho has already found a way of maximising Tottenham’s threat from an attacking point of view, and the players have adapted to that straight away.
“There has been something positive about most of their performances under him, and results have generally been good too.
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“One of the big things he has already identified is the vulnerability of the team, and I think he is working hard to put that right. I don’t mean any tactical weakness, more their state of mind.
“Yes, part of his time has to go on coaching and setting up the team the way he wants it, but he has also been trying to restore confidence, arrogance and belief to this Spurs side.
“As a team, they had completely lost that, especially at home, because they had suffered a few dodgy results there.”
The former England international also opined that it was now clear that Levy’s decision to part ways with Pochettino, which was quite unpopular with a lot of Spurs fans, was the right one. He insisted that the Spurs chairman had a clear vision in his head with the appointment of Mourinho.
Jenas added, “Overall, I think Mourinho’s arrival has been really positive, and credit needs to go to Spurs chairman Daniel Levy for acting when he did.
“I cannot think of anyone else connected to the club who would have made the decision then to look Mauricio Pochettino in the eye, and say ‘this is the end’, but Levy did.
“Now the dust has settled, you can see he was right. Levy also had a clear vision as to what he wanted the next step to be, which is not only to be competing for trophies, but winning them.
“That is why he went for Mourinho – he sees him as the final piece in the puzzle. Timing-wise, it was a great move. Other Premier League clubs sat and waited before sacking their manager, and have since delayed appointing a replacement.
“Levy went ahead, because he knew exactly who he wanted. The players deserve praise for responding in the manner they have done, but Mourinho has clearly made a difference – look at where Spurs were when he took over, and where they are now.
“His objective now will still be to win a trophy this season, as well as getting in the top four, and I genuinely believe he will look at his squad and think he can do it with them.”
Spurs Web Opinion
Arsenal’s struggles in getting a new top-class manager to replace Unai Emery really shows how important it was for Levy to be decisive. Overall, it looks like the timing of the change was spot on as it has given the team the bounce that we were all hoping for. Given that this is our first full season at our new stadium, we really couldn’t afford to miss out on Champions League qualification.
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