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FORMER Manager Watch: Nuno Espírito Santo

chas vs dave

Well-Known Member
Jul 17, 2008
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AJW

Well-Known Member
Jan 7, 2007
3,533
6,413

Four months and out: How Nuno’s Tottenham reign unravelled and why it was doomed to fail​

People who work in football often talk about “alignment” — the idea that, for a club to work well, everyone must be pulling in the same direction and with the same ideas.

The remarkable thing about Nuno Espirito Santo’s 10 league games in charge of Tottenham Hotspur is not that they ended abruptly, but that they ever started at all. Nuno’s appointment on June 30 was a total failure of alignment, and his dismissal on Monday morning has been almost inevitable ever since.

Many things went wrong during Nuno’s four months in charge but how many of those should really have been a surprise?

You can point to the fact that only Norwich City create less in the Premier League than Spurs do, but then why were the players put in the hands of a manager who has only ever played defensive, counter-attack football?

You can point to the damage done by splitting the squad into first and second teams, but why appoint someone with no track record of success at big clubs?

You can say that Nuno was too quiet or uncommunicative around the training ground, but why did Tottenham need to appoint him to find that out?

For all of the mistakes that Nuno made during his short time in charge at the north London side, it is only fair to ask: Were any of them as bad as the mistake of giving him the job in the first place?

Perhaps the most important fact about Nuno’s tenure was that Tottenham had rejected him as an option long before they gave him the job.
Is there more of it?
 

NEVILLEB

Well-Known Member
Nov 6, 2006
6,793
6,446
4 months in and we’re in 8th.

Bigger names would have kept their jobs.

I’m glad he’s going because he was a stupid appointment but he’s inherited a team that couldn’t play under Poch and Mourinho.
 

McFlash

In the corner, eating crayons.
Oct 19, 2005
12,990
46,616
This is why a high profile DoF never works. None of it surprises me.
I think it's OK if the manager is a strong enough character, I just don't think Nuno had the charisma.
Paratici has worked well with Conte before and wanted him originally, so hopefully they'll be fine.
Big players need a big manager and Nuno was just such a bad choice in so many ways. Was overshadowed by the personality of Fabio and didn't have Poch's mateyness with the players.
 

$hoguN

Well-Known Member
Jul 25, 2005
26,682
34,845
4 months in and we’re in 8th.

Bigger names would have kept their jobs.

I’m glad he’s going because he was a stupid appointment but he’s inherited a team that couldn’t play under Poch and Mourinho.
No they wouldn’t. Pochettino didn’t for example.

The quality of football, the lack of a game plan, the lack of progression and probably the lack of personality meant that he couldn’t stay
 

Serpico

Well-Known Member
Dec 30, 2019
3,072
4,561
Sacking Nuno could be seen as a smokescreen of all that’s wrong st Tottenham. Suddenly everyone’s on a high- Conte is coming and we are going to be a force. We’ve been here before. In football you don’t celebrate until it happens. Football events are never predicable. I’m struggling to stay calm as everyone so let’s hope all this doesn’t end badly- again.
 

chrissivad

Staff
May 20, 2005
51,646
58,072
I hope he gets a break from football and comes back when he is ready.

Just wasn't the right fit for us, but I hope his next job (depending on club...) goes better for him
 

slartibartfast

Grunge baby forever
Oct 21, 2012
18,320
33,955
Sacking Nuno could be seen as a smokescreen of all that’s wrong st Tottenham. Suddenly everyone’s on a high- Conte is coming and we are going to be a force. We’ve been here before. In football you don’t celebrate until it happens. Football events are never predicable. I’m struggling to stay calm as everyone so let’s hope all this doesn’t end badly- again.
It always ends badly. Thats inevitable. Most managers are gone in a few years and its normally down to the football being shit or a better jobs come up. Enjoy these little moments of happiness because theres far too much shit 99%of the time.
 
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