Jose Mourinho already looks like he regrets taking over as Tottenham manager, believes Arsenal legend Paul Merson.
The 57-year-old replaced Mauricio Pochettino as Spurs boss in November and has had mixed results, but his side are currently on a six-match unbeaten run.
The north London team are coming off a win over Manchester City in the Premier League and victory over Southampton in the FA Cup, but Merson reckons the Special One is yet to have any impact at the club.
During the win over the Saints, Mourinho substituted Jan Vertonghen and the Belgian looked distraught, which Merson believes shows cracks are already starting to appear, as they did when he was in charge at Old Trafford.
‘Jose Mourinho has not improved Tottenham and after Jan Vertonghen’s strop it looks like Manchester United all over again,’ Merson wrote in the Daily Star.
‘I said when he went there it would give them a lift and there would be a charm offensive – and he was all smiles for a while.
‘But everyone knew it wouldn’t last, didn’t they? He’s gone back to being Grumpy Mourinho again. And I don’t see how he’s improved them at all. Not one bit.
‘He looks like he’s thinking: “What have I done coming here?” You don’t see him high-fiving ball boys now do you?
‘Spurs are a million miles away at the moment and they don’t have much money to spend. They didn’t buy him a striker and they won’t be breaking the bank in the next few windows either.’
Tottenham are fifth in the Premier League after their dramatic win over City and just four points off the Champions League spots.
Chelsea hold fourth place at the moment, but Merson is completely dismissive of Spurs’ chances of catching them.
‘It’s not really working, is it?’ Merson continued. ‘Chelsea are in the driving seat to finish fourth and I can’t see Spurs catching them right now.’
Spurs are back in Premier League action at Norwich next weekend, before the first leg of their Champions League last 16 tie against RB Leipzig in London.
The following game is a trip to Chelsea in a hugely important contest in the race for the top four.
Tottenham are currently playing without a recognised striker due to Harry Kane being out with a hamstring injury and them having no other options in their squad.
Mourinho has admitted he is frustrated with the situation, but insists he is not blaming anyone else at the club.
‘I cannot hide. If I say it’s easy to play three competitions without a striker, I’m going to lie. I cannot lie,’ said the Portuguese. ‘But if it’s not possible, it’s not possible.
‘For me the great thing is that we’re all together on this in the club. There’s nobody to blame.
‘We don’t want a striker to just help us now. We want a striker to be good for our future, possibly to play with Harry Kane together in the future. And with the difficulties of the market, it was very, very difficult to find [one].’
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