Pundit insists Mourinho rant made Spurs boss sound ‘insecure and thin-skinned’

Former Blackburn Rovers striker, Chris Sutton, has claimed that Jose Mourinho’s response to Paul Merson’s comments before the game against West Ham made the Spurs boss come off as insecure.

Merson claimed after Tottenham’s draw against Manchester United on Friday that Kane will struggle to score the number of goals he usually does while playing under Jose Mourinho (Sky Sports).

Merson’s comments seemingly struck a nerve with the Spurs boss, who came prepared with statistics relating to the various world-class strikers he has managed in an attempt to send a message to the Sky Sports pundit (Football.London).

While Sutton was not a fan of Mourinho’s comments, he praised the Tottenham head coach and his team for doing their talking on the pitch as the Lilywhites overcame West Ham 2-0, with Kane also getting on the scoresheet.

In his column for The Daily Mail, Sutton wrote: “Jose Mourinho didn’t need to respond to Paul Merson’s Harry Kane comments and defend his record with strikers in the build-up to this match.

“We all know his history as a manager, and that only served in making him seem insecure and thin-skinned.

“What Mourinho needed, more than anything, was for his team to respond on the pitch.

“Whether it was pretty or not — and it largely wasn’t — they got the win that they desperately needed.”

The pundit also insisted that Spurs could not have afforded anything but a win against the Hammers if they wanted to keep their top-four aspirations alive.

Sutton added: “Tottenham went into this having not won any of their last seven matches, including Champions League and FA Cup exits to Norwich and RB Leipzig respectively.

“Mourinho’s side could not afford to go eight without a win to lose more ground in the top four race and, after a little help from West Ham and a Kane goal, the run ended.”

Spurs Web Opinion

While I enjoyed watching Jose put Merson in his place, I also thought that the Spurs boss’ response could prove counterproductive. I was worried that Jose’s words had put too much pressure on the side, and Harry Kane in particular, ahead of the game. However, the players deserve credit for how solid they looked on Tuesday as well as the energy levels they displayed in just their second game back.

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