Jose Mourinho's appointment at Tottenham: Premier League managers have their say
Lampard: "We had a couple of messages, just to wish him well in his new role as he has done for me, he's got a good team. It will be tough because Spurs have quality players, a quality manager and they have the structure there, they will be a threat without a doubt"
Friday 22 November 2019 18:44, UK
With Jose Mourinho taking up the hotseat at Tottenham, Premier League managers give their verdict on the 'humble' one's return to management in the English top-flight, as well as Mauricio Pochettino's exit.
Frank Lampard: "We had a couple of messages, just to wish him well in his new role as he has done for me, he's got a good team it will be tough because they have quality players, a quality manager and they have the structure there, they will be a threat without a doubt. Jose has managed a lot of football clubs over a long career, sometimes that is what happens that you make decisions as you go. Whether fans judge you or not for it is out of your hands, as players and managers we have the right to work but we also have to be aware of the tribal instinct from fans."
Jurgen Klopp: "Welcome back Jose. It's nice to have him back, it was desperate, you could see, in the time he was not in! But on the other side, Mauricio is not there anymore and it shows how quickly things change nowadays. I think it was around five months ago we played each other in the Champions League final. Now he is on holiday, he can enjoy it. He did a brilliant job at Tottenham. He's an outstanding coach and a great guy, left and right of the game. When I heard it first I couldn't really believe it in that moment but a couple of hours later they already had a solution. I hope he can enjoy the next few days, weeks, months because it will not last long before he is back. And Jose is highly motivated obviously, that will be interesting as well."
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer: "It is good to have Jose back. Definitely, especially for you guys. For Mauricio, it is always sad when one of your colleagues - a good man - loses his job before Christmas. It is never nice to see. I wish him all the best. In football, you can never be surprised at anything or shocked. I just have to focus on us. If you're in a job, or if you're out of a job and you're a manager, you want this job. It doesn't really matter whatever happens around."
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Pep Guardiola: "You know him (Jose Mourinho) better than me. He was many years here in different clubs. Welcome back. An incredible manager and I'm pretty sure he'll do a good job. I was a little surprised with Mauricio because he had done an incredible job and the club was better. Always the managers when they leave it is to know if the club and team are better than when they take over and I think it happened but decisions are made and there is nothing else to say."
Steve Bruce: "I'm delighted that Jose's back because when he walked into the Premier League all those years ago, he was a breath of fresh air, wasn't he? He was something different. When you look at his record, what he's done, the achievements he's got...I saw it yesterday the trophies he's won - everywhere he's been he's won the league. He's quite remarkable in what he's done. He's up there with as good as you are ever going to get."
Manuel Pellegrini: "[Mourinho] is not my enemy. Everyone has the option to play football the way they want, to talk about how they want to and you can't be criticising always what I think. That's why he's not my friend, but he's not my enemy. We have different ways of thinking about things, that's the only difference we have. The philosophy of Pochettino is not the same as Mourinho, but he's only been in charge of the team in two days so I don't think he'll try to change it properly. We'll see Tottenham play a similar way [on Saturday] with some touches of what Mourinho thinks football is."
Sean Dyche: "He's not short of attention for the right reasons. He's a top, top manager. You can't not respect someone like Jose Mourinho after what he's done, and I certainly have massive respect for him. I don't know him, hardly at all, only in passing when we've played games, he's always having a go at me! I never do that... I don't know the ins and outs of it, but I do know about the manager (Pochettino), he's a fantastic manager, I think he's changed somewhat the look of Tottenham, particularly their commitment to the cause, their pressing lines, the energy of the side and quality - but I think Tottenham sides in my lifetime have always had quality. He's done a great job, as regards respect for the manager and his staff, full of respect for them, and the manager coming in."
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Marco Silva: "It was longer than I expected to be honest but I think it is very good for him to be back, in my opinion, it's really good for the Premier League as well, to have Jose Mourinho back in charge. For sure, when a manager has achieved what he has managed to achieve in his career, what he has won in his career. It is really good to have him back. For me, as you know he is my friend, it is really good to see him back. Some words as well for Mauricio Pochettino as well. He has to be really proud of everything he did at Tottenham. He helped their players and the club to Europe. He has to be really proud of what he did in his job.
Brendan Rodgers: "Jose is a winner he has been that throughout his career, he brings an intensity and focus. [Reflecting on the pair working together at Chelsea] he was a big influence for me as a young coach, his detail, his quality, was absolutely brilliant for me. He was very open with his ideas, he was a real leader of the squad and the team and he was very clear on how he wanted to work. I was in pole position to see that."
Eddie Howe: "I always welcome the best back into the league, I think it makes the league better. I was as surprised as anybody else from afar, Jose is an unbelievable manager and I think it is great for the league as I say that he is back. It's probably not ideal timing for us being that it is his first home league game but we relish that opportunity when it comes. You look at his record, I would love his track record, the trophies that he has won and what he has achieved in the game is incredible, for me he is one of the all-time greats and the trophy cabinet says that, he certainly has a lot more to give."
Roy Hodgson: "I certainly have enormous respect for both men. I had a great working relationship with Mauricio and enormous respect for the work he has done and the same goes for Mourinho. He is taking over an extremely talented group of players."
Read our analysis of why Mauricio Pochettino's future is bright, despite his Tottenham exit
