There was a point on Wednesday night when Jose Mourinho crouched on the touchline, frenetically clapping his hands together in a desperate act of encouragement for his Tottenham Hotspur team. It was futile in the end as RB Leipzig won the first leg of their last 16 tie 1-0 to darken the Portuguese’s mood and heighten the severity of the situation he faces.
The moment was a fascinating glimpse into how Mourinho is struggling to contend with both crippling injuries and mounting expectations.
Clambering back a 12-point deficit to their London rivals Chelsea has proven to be an arduous task, but here we are on the eve of Mourinho’s latest return to Stamford Bridge with Spurs just a point behind in the race for Champions League football – at least until greater clarity emerges surrounding Manchester City’s appeal over their ban.
But should Tottenham exit the Champions League at the last 16 stage and fail to usurp the Blues to finish inside the top four, Daniel Levy’s calculated risk to ditch Mauricio Pochettino will have failed. Mourinho knows this and, rightfully, is emphasising the circumstances surrounding the adversity he is currently facing by turning to his trusted deflection act.
The frostiest of receptions was expected on Saturday when discussing this fixture in the weeks after taking the job at one of his former club’s fiercest enemies, yet the predicament that both sides find themselves in means this narrative is no longer as impassioned as it once was.
“For me, it’s a game. I am 100 per cent Tottenham, 100 per cent my club always, all my career,” Mourinho said in a stinging comment on what the game means to him.
“No space at all for my previous clubs. It’s so easy for me to play that game. Difficult because of Chelsea’s quality but not difficult from an emotional point of view.”
There is an ambivalence from both sides now with the circus surrounding Mourinho likely to be ignored to an extent, due to the sheer tension surrounding the game.
Both managers are far too busy to engage in mind games, with mounting injuries forcing them to scramble around for solutions. Callum Hudson-Odoi has trained after missing Monday’s loss to Manchester United, while Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Tammy Abraham have been involved in training, handing Lampard some timely respite.
While the losses of Son Heung-min and Harry Kane cannot be overstated, if Mourinho cannot lean on his tactical repertoire to make the difference now, then what exactly have Spurs hired him for? This was not a patient rebuild after all and while Mourinho will back himself to make the difference with a full pre-season and funds to transform the side this summer, Levy plumped for Mourinho to tread water at the top, not sink beneath Europe’s exclusive competition.
Lampard outwitted his old master back in December, with Mourinho incapable of deciphering how to counter the three-man defence. If he can do so once more, the gap might be just four points for Spurs, but the psychological damage and aura of superiority will be much greater.
It is precisely why Mourinho will be unable to revel in his role as the pantomime villain at Stamford Bridge. The consequences are too extreme and this time the game is bigger than him.
