MOT View: Mourinho appointment at Spurs could have two knock-on effects for Leeds
The big football news on Wednesday came from Tottenham, who sacked manager Mauricio Pochettino after five years in charge, and just five months after he led them to the Champions League final.
Then, on Wednesday morning, the club announced that Jose Mourinho would be their new manager.
It’s a seismic shift in north London, but Mourinho’s appointment could have two knock-on effects for Leeds United.
1. Danny Rose
Rose was a Leeds youth player who made the move to Tottenham in 2007 for around £1m. According to Phil Hay, Leeds have a sell-on clause that would see them get 10% of any profits that Tottenham make on him.
His relationship with Pochettino hasn’t always been the best. The first trouble came when he gave an interview to the Sun in August 2017 and hinted at moving north. He only played 10 times that season in the Premier League.
It looked as if he was set to leave Tottenham this summer after he was left out of their pre-season tour to “to explore prospective opportunities with other clubs“.
A valuation of £25m would have seen Leeds take around £2.4m.
In an angry interview in the Standard last week he said he would run his contract down at Tottenham and leave on a free – he has 18 months left on his current deal.
If the problem was with Pochettino, Mourinho could change things. It’s possible that Rose might get a new deal and reclaim his spot as undisputed number one left-back. That could lead to a big sale down the line.
It’s also possible that Mourinho will convince Rose that a move away is in his best interests as a player.
Either way, Mourinho is likely to deal with the issue, especially given his poor relationship with players at Man United.
2. Jack Clarke
There’s been a lot of speculation around Jack Clarke and his loan deal with Leeds. Clarke hasn’t played a minute in the Championship this season and Tottenham have a recall option that they could activate in January.
Given that he hasn’t played, you might think it doesn’t really matter what happens either way.
However, according to Football Insider, Marcelo Bielsa has been pleased with what Clarke has been doing this season – to the extent that he thinks he’s made a step-up from last season.
He said that Clarke would get his chance with Leeds this season.
Bielsa has had a long-running relationship with Pochettino since the Leeds manager discovered Poch as a 12-year-old. Will Mourinho taking over change things?
Clarke wouldn’t have been recalled by Poch to play for Tottenham in the second half of the season had he stayed. However, Pochettino would have been perhaps more open to Bielsa keeping Clarke.
Mourinho might have more pressing concerns than Clarke but it’s entirely possible that he decides to place him at another Championship club.
Whether he’s played or not, having him as an option could be crucial in the second half of the season.
On a personal note, if we were Clarke, we wouldn’t be too happy about the appointment of Mourinho. He’s not renowned for giving young players a chance.
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