Mourinho Named Tottenham Hotspur Coach as Pochettino Fired
Mourinho most recently managed Manchester United Plc, and previously coached Chelsea, Real Madrid, Inter Milan and FC Porto.
(Bloomberg) -- Jose Mourinho joined the third English Premier League soccer side of his managerial career after being named to replace Mauricio Pochettino as head coach of Tottenham Hotspur Ltd.
The 56-year-old signed a contract at Tottenham Hotspur -- a London rival of Chelsea F.C., where he first made his name in England 15 years ago -- that runs until the end of the 2022/23 season.
“I am excited to be joining a club with such a great heritage and such passionate supporters,” Mourinho said in a statement. “The quality in both the squad and the academy excites me. Working with these players is what has attracted me.”
Mourinho most recently managed Manchester United Plc, but was removed from his position in December 2018 after a poor run of results.
He’s one of the most successful managers of his generation having won the prestigious UEFA Champions League twice with two clubs, Portugal’s F.C. Porto in 2004 and Italy’s Inter Milan in 2010, alongside three Premier League titles with Chelsea in 2005, 2006 and 2015. Mourinho also previously managed F.C. Real Madrid in Spain.
Extremely Disappointing
Argentinean Mauricio Pochettino left Spurs on Tuesday after five years in charge, with the club sitting 14th in the Premier League table. “We were extremely reluctant to make this change and it is not a decision the board has taken lightly, nor in haste,” Tottenham Hotspur Chairman Daniel Levy said in a statement announcing Pochettino’s departure.
“Regrettably domestic results at the end of last season and beginning of this season have been extremely disappointing,” Levy added.
Tottenham’s form this season is in stark contrast to last term when the club finished fourth in the league and runners up in the Champions League. Finishing outside of the top four would see the club miss out on Europe’s most lucrative soccer tournament next season.
To contact the reporter on this story: Joe Easton in London at jeaston7@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Beth Mellor at bmellor@bloomberg.net, Sam Unsted
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