The Portuguese coach cannot understand why is subjected to more criticism than his peers, despite a solid start to his reign at Spurs
Tottenham boss Jose Mourinho says he is treated more harshly than other managers, and that “people look at me with different eyes”.
Mourinho inherited a squad which had fallen to 14th in the Premier League standings when he was drafted in to replace Mauricio Pochettino in the Spurs hot seat back in November.
The Lilywhites have since won 12 of their 24 top-flight games under Mourinho, and only Liverpool, Manchester City and Manchester United have amassed more points in the same period.
Despite that impressive record, Mourinho has come in for plenty of criticism for his perceived negative style of play and rigid tactical set-up in north London.
His selection policy has also been called into question, with club-record signing Tanguy Ndombele now struggling to hold down a place in the squad.
Mourinho feels he is unfairly scrutinised for every decision he makes, telling Sky Sports: “People look at me with different eyes. I know people expect me to do things that you don’t expect with many others. I don’t read much, but with some of the questions I get, I have that feeling, yes.
“For example, the other day after a game (the 3-1 win at Newcastle) the first question was about a player that didn’t start.
“When a player is not playing with other coaches it’s never a problem. They make rotations. They make decisions. They leave on the bench incredible players and everyone looks at them and feels that this is their job. That’s the way a big team has to be.
“When Tottenham, for the first time in the season has, for example, Lucas Moura, Steven Bergwijn, Erik Lamela and Heung-Min Son (all available), people always ask me about the ones that are not playing. So, yes, in some aspects I feel that a bit.”
The 57-year-old is confident that his side are now on course to fight for major honours, as he compared his first few months in charge at Tottenham to the beginning of his hugely successful spell at Porto.
“We, myself and the staff, analyse internally and we know we are doing a very positive job,” he said. “I can compare it a little bit with my experience at Porto. When I got to Porto in January (2002), that half of the season was really hard, but was so important for the preparation of the next one.
“So that’s what I’m doing now, accumulating knowledge and experience in the club to prepare for what’s next.”
Mourinho added on the possibility of adding to his Spurs’ squad in the summer transfer window: “In normal circumstances, it’s easy to see, Tottenham would be in the top four.
“Let’s see what the others do. It’s not just about us analysing ourselves it’s also about being realistic and analysing our opponents.
“I’m happy with the globality of the squad I have, and I hope we can give some little touches to improve and make us better, more competitive, more adapted to my way of thinking with a balance I always try to find in a squad. If we manage that, then we will see.”
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