News broke on Tuesday evening that Pochettino had been dismissed from the role he had held since May 2014 and the rumour mill over his replacement soon kicked into gear with Mourinho quickly installed as the early favourite.
Less than 12 hours later, last season’s losing Champions League finalists had indeed announced Mourinho as their new boss, bringing a speedy end to what turned into a whirlwind day in the life of one of the Premier League’s biggest teams.
The deal, according to Sky Sports News was brokered by Israeli super-agent Pini Zahavi.
The man who took Neymar to Paris St Germain in a world record £190m deal was the driving force which convinced Daniel Levy that Jose Mourinho was the man to turn Tottenham’s fortunes around.
Initial negotiations between Levy and Zahavi began following Tottenham’s 1-1 draw at home to Watford over three weeks ago.
Those negotiations continued for more than a fortnight – and only in the last week have face-to-face talks, between Levy and Mourinho taken place.
We understand those negotiations took place in London.
Discussions centred around the present squad, the style of play Mourinho would adopt and potential transfer budgets. We understand while Jose believes the squad is strong, it is under-achieving and has the potential to be successful. Funds will be made available if deemed necessary.
Why did Tottenham opt for Jose?
Zahavi became convinced that, while Mourinho had come close to re-joining Real Madrid in recent months, a deal for him to take over the reins at the new Tottenham Hotspur Stadium was possible.
The 76-year-old, who spends his time between homes in Marble Arch and Tel Aviv, was the man who convinced Roman Abramovich back in 2004, to bring the then 41-year old Porto manager, to Stamford Bridge.
Now, 15 years after Zahavi ushered ‘the Special One’ through the doors of Stamford Bridge, he has brought about Mourinho’s return, tasked with creating another dynasty at one of the Premier League’s top clubs.
During several rounds of negotiations over the past month, Zahavi convinced the Tottenham chairman his club was missing a winning mentality and the 56-year old Mourinho would bring that to their stunning new £1bn north London home.
Zahavi explained how Jose was perfectly placed to arrest Tottenham’s decline, to instil a new belief in the squad – and how he was desperate to get back onto the training ground to work with players after 11 months out of the game.
Mourinho had prioritised a return to the Premier League because he was motivated to win major trophies with a third English club. He turned down China and a host of other European jobs to wait for the right project and clearly he feels this is it. There is no doubting what his main priority is and that is to deliver success. Ultimately this is what has been most enticing for Spurs.
