Tottenham: Jose Mourinho stars in ‘All or Nothing’ Episode 2

Inside with Jose Mourinho

The crew followed Jose Mourinho around as he went about meeting all the different operational teams within the Tottenham Hotspur Football Club at Lilywhite House. Much like a new president or even a celebrity making an introductory tour, Mourinho was paraded from department to department for selfies and some words of self-confidence and appreciation. For the finance team, Jose loves them, he recognized the role of IT in everything, and had one word to say about HR, “dangerous”.

All the while everyone was all smiles as out came the cameras as employees and even families took photos with self-proclaimed Special One. Given the way everyone seems to react to his presence, maybe he really is the Special One and if he wins a trophy or more than one at Spurs over the next season, I imagine most of us associated with the club will call him whatever he wants. The point is, the celebrity of Mourinho is real and it is hard not to notice.

We also got insight into Mourinho the coach, both as a tactician and as a man manager. The intimacy shown in the Eric Dier situation, where one minute he is being told that me “being here can be good for you” and the next where Mourinho, in his own words, is “stabbing him in the back”, is very revealing of what it is like to play at any club and particularly under a man like Mourinho.

Even more revealing is Jose’s frank conversation with Daniel Levy where for the good of the family, he needs to reinsert Dier in the next match and is willing to sacrifice Harry Winks for it. I recollect Jose defending both his decision and Dier to the media after the match, but this was an inside look at how he handled a potentially devastating situation with Eric.

Whereas Jose is speaking Portuguese and thinking about the impact his decisions are having on Dier, alternatively, he is approaching Serge Aurier and Dele Alli quite differently.

With both players, Mourinho is sharing how he feels both publicly and privately with both. His understanding of which button to push to get that performance is impressive. A lot of players would not be able to play after being told he was afraid of being played, but Serge went on to have a heck of a season under Jose and was a mainstay in the lineup.

Likewise, Jose is on Dele nearly from the moment he steps onto the pitch with his whistle. He continues in the film sessions on the practice pitch, and then back in his office in Enfield.  I agree with Jose and his proposition that Dele will regret it if he does not give more, and you can read more about Dele here.

But, for Jose to be able to walk in and lay things that plainly so quickly shows just how confident Mourinho is in himself and his read of his people. Given Dele’s initial response, we know he is on the right path.

According to Mourinho, “Football is about trying to win” and there is no doubt Jose is willing to do whatever he thinks it takes to try to win. Whether that is shove Serge way up the right wing and ask Christian Eriksen to cover the space behind or praise a ball boy for a job exceptionally well done, once Jose decides he is going to do it, he does it and does it 100 percent just like he expects from others. It just so happens the other two stars of this episode are on his list.