Érik Lamela has been speaking to The Times about his eight-year stint at Tottenham, and he’s shared his thoughts on José Mourinho.
What’s the story?
Well, as some grew frustrated with Mourinho’s defensive football at Spurs, Lamela believes he is an ‘amazing coach’ who worked tirelessly in N17.
The 29-year-old told The Times: “José is an amazing coach. His mentality is amazing. He tried his best for the club — I can say that because it’s the truth. I know how hard he worked for Tottenham; he was a great guy as well and I enjoyed the time with him.”
In 86 games as Tottenham manager, Mourinho recorded 45 wins, 17 draws and 24 defeats, averaging 1.77 points per game.
Under his guidance, Spurs scored 173 goals, while conceding 110 – the 58-year-old also guided Tottenham to the Carabao Cup final.
Bizarrely, Daniel Levy fired Mourinho just days before the showpiece event at Wembley in April 2021, in what was a very poorly timed decision.
Ryan Mason then held the reins, as what looked like being a promising season for Tottenham fizzled out into nothingness in disappointing fashion.
Should Tottenham have kept José Mourinho?
It sounds strange to say, as things had certainly turned sour for the Portuguese coach at Tottenham.
However, can anyone genuinely say that Spurs are better off under Nuno Espirito Santo right now?
At least with Mourinho, the north Londoners had Harry Kane in the form of his life, and also had some defensive solidity to them.
They also had a proven winner, who has been named FIFA World Coach of the Year on four occasions with four different clubs.
Now, Spurs have Nuno, and are even more boring to watch.
In our view, if Tottenham fans were told they would either have Mourinho or Nuno ahead of the 2021/22 season, not many would opt for the latter.
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