Jose Mourinho’s future as Tottenham manager has come into question once more after Spurs were knocked out of the Europa League by Dinamo Zagreb, but his departure would not come cheap, according to reports.
Spurs looked to have one foot in the quarter-finals as they took a 2-0 lead to the Croatian capital on Thursday night, but a brilliant hat-trick from Mislav Orsic saw Dinamo run out 3-0 winners after extra time and progress 3-2 on aggregate.
The result, which came four days after the 2-1 defeat away to Arsenal in the North London Derby, has only added to the existing pressure on Mourinho, who has come under fire for his perceived negative approach.
Spurs are currently eighth in the Premier League, three points behind West Ham in fifth, where they will need to finish to qualify for Europe next season unless they beat Manchester City in the Carabao Cup final next month – although even that would only secure them a place in the Europa league play-off round.
Tottenham would have to pay £25 million to cover the remaining two years of Mourinho’s contract, report the Mirror, and chairman Daniel Levy is expected to give the Portuguese the chance to win the club’s first trophy since 2008 and finish in the top four.
Champions League qualification seems unlikely given Spurs’ performances and inconsistency – they’ve won four and lost six of their last ten league games – but they do only trail fourth-placed Chelsea by three points as it stands and have a game in hand.
Following the defeat in Zagreb, captain Hugo Lloris suggested that all is not well inside the dressing room: “It is a reflection of what is going on in the club. I hope everyone in the changing room feels responsible. We have to respect the badge.”
RB Leipzig and Leicester bosses Julian Nagelsmann and Brendan Rodgers have both been rumoured as potential successors to Mourinho, who took over from Mauricio Pochettino in November 2019.
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