Tottenham have sacked manager Jose Mourinho less than a week before the Carabao Cup final – with academy coach Ryan Mason set to take first-team training.
The 58-year-old has paid the price for a disappointing campaign, with Spurs currently seventh in the Premier League and with little chance of making the top four.
That may not prove to be too much of an issue given Tottenham’s involvement in the controversial European Super League – but Mourinho will not be the man to lead them in the new breakaway competition should it materialise.
Mourinho has also been denied the chance of delivering a first piece of silverware to the club in 13 years, with Spurs set to take on Manchester City at Wembley on Sunday.
The former Porto, Chelsea, Inter Milan, Real Madrid and Manchester United boss was appointed in November 2019, less than 12 hours after Mauricio Pochettino had been dismissed.
What’s been said
A statement from Tottenham read: “The club can today announce that Jose Mourinho and his coaching staff Joao Sacramento, Nuno Santos, Carlos Lalin and Giovanni Cerra have been relieved of their duties.
‘Ryan Mason will take first-team training today and a further update will follow in due course.’
Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy said on the club’s official website: “Jose and his coaching staff have been with us through some of our most challenging times as a club.
‘Jose is a true professional who showed enormous resilience during the pandemic.
‘On a personal level I have enjoyed working with him and regret that things have not worked out as we both had envisaged.
‘He will always be welcome here and we should like to thank him and his coaching staff for their contribution.’
How things quickly turned sour in north London
Levy had long been an admirer of the Portuguese ever since his Chelsea days and was quick to get his man in the hope he could end the club’s trophy drought.
After a mixed bag in the 2019-20 Covid-hit campaign things started off well this season as Mourinho led Spurs to the top of the Premier League, but they have slumped since December and fell out of title contention.
They also suffered an embarrassing Europa League exit to Dinamo Zagreb in the last-16 which further weakened Mourinho’s position.
The last few weeks contained all the hallmarks of a familiar Mourinho end game as there were stories of player feuds, spats with the media and a deflection from poor performances.
How much of the decision to terminate his contract was a result of Tottenham’s entry in to the Super League remains to be seen, but they will now have the funds to cover Mourinho’s hefty pay-off fee.
Mason, just 29, is expected to take charge of the first team until Spurs appoint a new permanent successor.
The former Spurs midfielder, who was forced to retire from playing due to a head injury, has been working as an academy coach since 2019 and will take training on Monday ahead of a Premier League match against Southampton on Wednesday.
RB Leipzig manager Julian Nagelsmann is the early favourite to replace Mourinho, though the German coach has also been linked with Bayern Munich.
