Chris Sutton has told BBC Radio 5 Live’s Monday Night Club that Nuno Espirito Santo took on a poisoned chalice by becoming the new Tottenham Hotspur manager this summer.
The former Chelsea striker feels Nuno accepted a lose-lose task by taking up Daniel Levy’s offer to replace Jose Mourinho. The Spurs supporters were never going to accept his style of football. While factors outside his control, like Harry Kane, add to a nightmare scenario.
Nuno did not make the situation better, in Sutton’s opinion, by shouldering the blame for Tottenham’s defeat at Arsenal, either. The Portuguese stated it was his ‘responsibility’, via Eurosport, after the north London derby as his game plan failed.
Sutton blames Levy for Nuno’s Tottenham ‘nightmare‘
Sutton points the finger firmly at Tottenham Chairman Levy for Nuno’s difficult situation as the club’s latest head coach. Having turned to the 47-year-old after failing to appoint Julian Nagelsmann, Brendan Rodgers, Erik ten Hag, Mauricio Pochettino, Antonio Conte, Paulo Fonseca, Gennaro Gattuso and Graham Potter for various reasons.
“It doesn’t feel like the right fit – he’s got to win over the Spurs fans, and I’m not so sure he can,” Sutton said. “He wasn’t first-choice or second-choice. Last season, his Wolves team were on the decline and the Spurs fans were never going to like his brand of football.”
Adding: “He’s been put in an incredibly difficult situation, there’s no doubt about that. But Nuno’s comments blaming himself after the Arsenal game were worrying, and blaming the players as well.
“There were players not running back, unsure about what jobs they were being asked to do. They were a complete and utter shambles. I don’t think Spurs fans will ever get the type of football they want under Nuno. Chuck in the Kane stuff as well, and it’s turning into a bit of a nightmare. The appointment simply didn’t fit, and that’s on Daniel Levy.”
Will Nuno wake up from his nightmare?
Nuno will desperately want to wake up from his nightmare when Tottenham host Mura and Aston Villa later this week. Failing to beat Mura in the Europa Conference League or Villa in the Premier League will only add to the toxic atmosphere building in north London.
As well as taking the blame for his tactics, Nuno suggested his players did not fulfil his plan at Arsenal. “I won’t name individuals who didn’t play it right. But the game plan was not right according to the players on the pitch,” he said, via The Sun.
If Nuno cannot get the Tottenham squad buying into his system, then he will struggle to get fans onboard, like Sutton suggests, raising more questions over Levy’s decision to hire him.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
