Mauricio Pochettino may well be Tottenham’s best manager in decades, but has his win percentage eclipsed Tim Sherwood’s?
Tottenham Hotspur boss Mauricio Pochettino recently managed his 100th Premier League game for the North Londoners, and his record as a manager at the club is something he should proud of.
As illustrated by the tweet from the official Tottenham Twitter account, in Pochettino’s 100 games, the team has 52 wins and 20 losses. In that time, Spurs have scored 173 goals and conceded 104. That obviously translates as a 52% win, 20% loss record, with an average of 1.73 goals scored per game and 1.04 conceded.
Considering the landmark, and the fact the North Londoners secured a third-place finish last season – the club’s highest in the Premier League – and are on course to go at least one better this year, the big question remains: how does his league record compare to self-publicised ‘King of the Percentages’ Tim Sherwood?
Sherwood, currently Swindon Town’s Director of Football, was appointed Spurs caretaker boss in December 2013 following Andre Villas-Boas’ sacking, securing the position full time before the end of the month on an 18-month contract.
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The former midfielder’s record until the end of the season wasn’t enough to keep him in the position, with Spurs coming sixth and ending the campaign with 69 points.
His 22 game league record stands at W 13 – D 3 – L 6 – Goals For 40 – Goals Against 30
Tim Sherwood (R) and coach Les Ferdinand
That’s an impressive 59% win percentage, 27% loss average, with an average of 1.82 goals scored per game and 1.36 conceded.
Sherwood spoke to the Mail in 2015, championing his winning percentage at Spurs compared to Pochettino’s.
“I don’t think anyone’s managed to better my win record, not even this guy Pochettino – and everyone’s talking about how well he’s done,” he told the Mail.
“I think he has done a really good job there, but mine’s still up there to be shot at.”
But the vast majority of Spurs fans will pour scorn on anyone that pushes the idea that Sherwood is in any way a superior manager to the man who has turned them into title challengers.
Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino
The truth of the matter is that Pochettino may have secured a lower percentage of wins than Sherwood managed in his short spell in charge, but the Argentine has a lower loss percentage that underlines the changes he made in the team, securing a higher number of draws instead of defeats. There is also a better goal difference for the current White Hart Lane boss: 1.73 goals scored and 1.04 conceded on average per game (0.69) versus 1.82 scored and 1.36 conceded (difference of 0.46)
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Additionally, for Sherwood, the defeats were bad ones – hammerings against Man City at home, and big losses against Liverpool and Chelsea away, plus a home defeat to Arsenal in the league, made it clear to Daniel Levy that he wasn’t someone who could take Spurs to the next level, even if he had played a big part in the development of the club. Having a strong win ratio is one thing, but if you lose to the teams around you, that negates the points earned.
Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino
Pochettino’s ability to get results in those games against top four rivals are one of the things that have stood out during his time at the club. The Argentine is still undefeated against Arsenal in the league, underlining this, and there have been impressive wins against Chelsea, Manchester City and Manchester United. Whereas Sherwood lost all four matches against the teams who finished in the top four in his time at the club.
The fact Pochettino’s record covers two and a half seasons, compared to Sherwood’s half season, also makes the Argentine’s data a more reliable sample of his qualities as a manager.
But what do you think? How do you interpret the data? Is there any argument that Sherwood’s desire to push for a win was an admirable part of the team, and something that Spurs should do more under Pochettino? Or do Tottenham’s other stats: their avoidance of defeat and tighter defence, alongside improving goalscoring and much stronger general performance matter more than win ratio?
Leave your comments below!
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