Martin Keown feels Jose Mourinho needs a big week and Joao Sacramento can help.
BBC pundit Martin Keown feels Jose Mourinho needs a week of two tactical masterclasses as Tottenham face RB Leipzig and Manchester United within a matter of days.
In the Daily Mail, Keown has also called for more from Mourinho’s assistant, 31-year-old Joao Sacramento, who he says has a big reputation as a tactician.
He said: “It feels as if Mourinho is setting his side up to be passive… instead of dictating and maybe some of Tottenham’s players are disappointed. Mourinho brought Joao Sacramento with him as an assistant. Sacramento, only 31, is reputed to be a big tactician, but Mourinho is continuing to set up for matches in the same way.
“Go prove you haven’t lost that Midas touch. Go guide Spurs into the last eight of a competition you haven’t won since 2010 with Inter Milan. Let’s see some positivity against Leipzig. Wins against both Leipzig and United would make it a wonderful week for Mourinho and Spurs. What a turnaround that would be for their season.”
Mourinho’s record of winning big matches and trophies in the past is one thing but the negativity Tottenham fans are seeing on the pitch and hearing in the press is more concerning.
The Portuguese can never be fully written off but he hasn’t shown any evidence for months that he is capable of coming up with a tactical masterclass to help Spurs get around their injury problems.
Mauricio Pochettino guided these players to last season’s final, largely due to the spirit he instilled in the club. Will largely the same squad run through walls for Mourinho?
It remains to be seen. The most concerning element of this Tottenham side is the defence and that’s where Mourinho is supposed to excel. He needs some magic from Sacramento to come up with a gameplan to stun Leipzig.
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