A lively, reinvigorated Tottenham side won their first away match in 307 days in Premier League, beating West Ham 3-2 on Jose Mourinho’s debut.
Spry, energized and full of vigour, Tottenham showed their intent from kickoff. It was the kind of match expected from a group of their caliber. Mourinho injected a belief and confidence that has been missing for months.
Seen iterating the words “you’re the man” to Dele Alli after Lucas Moura’s 43rd minute goal was yet another instance of what Mourinho is trying to accomplish in his first weeks in charge. Restoring confidence in his marquee players is of paramount importance to Mourinho and Tottenham. By the look of things, whatever he did in training this week worked.
"We've shown that we can go on brilliant runs, but there's still plenty to improve - it should never have been that close!"
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) November 23, 2019
Dele Alli and Son Heung-Min tell @DesKellyBTS that they know there's still plenty of work to come under new boss Jose Mourinho. pic.twitter.com/hh4nDuF0tk
This outcome, based on historical context, was always expected in his first match as Spurs new head coach. The performance, however, exceeded expectations. Spurs dominated from the outset and were unlucky not to keep a clean sheet. Tottenham took their foot off the gas after going up 3-0 early in the second half, but Mourinho and his new coaching staff will be comprehensively satisfied. The last 20 minutes were extremely disappointing, something Mourinho will focus on this week.
"I really enjoyed our first 60 minutes. The most important thing was to win." ✅
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) November 23, 2019
"I spent some time with Dele in training and we said the best Dele has to come back!"
Jose Mourinho gives his first interview as a winning Spurs boss...
🎙 @DesKellyBTS pic.twitter.com/6ZUuCMn2sK
The win, Tottenham’s first in 13 away Premier League matches, means so much more than three points in the standings. It broke an 10-month away curse and reminded of us what Tottenham are capable of. Son Heung-Min, Harry Kane, Dele Alli and Lucas Moura caused West Ham fits, constantly interchanging, playing with noticeable fervour and exuberance.
While it’s true that West Ham didn’t offer much of a threat until the latter stages of the match, Mourinho will use this victory in East London to further buoy his enlivened side.
Playing with confidence and belief are essential elements to a successful, thriving club. And based on today’s performance, aside from his side’s poor finish, those two invaluable tenants have been restored at Tottenham.