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| Spurs have taken four points from their first two games back ahead of Thursday’s trip to Sheffield United, but their chances of forcing their way into the Champions League have been hurt by the impressive form of Man United and Wolves since the restart |
Tottenham Hotspur’s squad does not need huge investment according to manager Jose Mourinho, despite looking like they will miss out on next season’s Champions League.
The north London club have enjoyed four successive seasons in Europe’s premier club competition and reached last year’s final, losing 2-0 to Liverpool in Madrid.
Ahead of Thursday’s Premier League visit to Sheffield United, Tottenham are in seventh spot, nine points behind fourth-placed Chelsea and seven behind Manchester United and Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Asked at his virtual pre-match news conference if missing out on the Champions League could impact on Tottenham’s close season squad-strengthening, Mourinho said: “A team that qualifies or doesn’t qualify for the Champions League, it makes a difference to their economical situation.
“That’s easy to understand and easy to accept. The two good things are that (chairman, Daniel) Mr Levy wants what I want. He wants what the fans want, which is to win football matches and to try to win trophies. So that’s one good thing.
“The second good thing is that we don’t need much. We don’t need many players. We don’t need huge investment. That’s not our profile as a club. With or without COVID, with or without Champions League, so I think we will manage to improve our squad which is what we want.”
Defender Jan Vertonghen looks set to leave once the season is concluded but Mourinho believes fellow defender Eric Dier will still be wit the club next season.
“My boss Mr Levy tells me that he wants Eric to sign a new contract and Eric tells me that he is more than happy here, he is more than happy with his situation,” Mourinho said.
“I hope that they can find an agreement, because I am taking the team in a certain direction.”
Tottenham need a win at Sheffield United to give them some hope of catching the teams above them, and they will be boosted by a sharper Harry Kane, who scored his first goal of an injury-hit year in the 2-0 defeat of West Ham United.
“The agility is coming, the sharpness is coming, the positioning is coming,” Mourinho said of the England captain. “The interaction with the other players is coming.”
REUTERS
