Wolfsburger clash creates welcome distraction for Mourinho

 “I believe that I will be in Tottenham’s history for the good reasons and not for the bad reasons”.

This was the final message from Jose Mourinho ahead of Spurs’ Europa League round of 32 second leg against Wolfsberger AC.

Tottenham’s 4-1 win in Hungary ensures that progression shouldn’t be a tough challenge but amongst a run of five defeats in six Premier League matches, a win is the aim for the Lilywhites.

As reports suggest Mourinho has four games to turn the tide in north London, the Europa League provides an opportunity for a positive result. Gareth Bale could be pivotal to any success after a man-of-the-match performance in the first leg.

Mourinho and Ben Davies both spoke positively about the Welshman, with his compatriot Davies confirming that he’s confident Bale still has the quality to succeed at the highest level.

“I think for me I’ll never have any doubts about Gareth Bale, having played with him and seen how good he can be.

“I feel like there’s kind of a narrative around him that one week he’s brilliant and one week he’s not. It doesn’t matter that he hasn’t played a lot of football in the last year or so. He has to build his way back in. I thought when he played against West Ham at the weekend he was probably our best player.

“So for me there’s no doubt that Gareth Bale’s quality is there and we’ll see it.”

As referenced by Davies, Bale’s effectiveness from the bench in Spurs’ defeat to London rivals West Ham was clear to see. With Mourinho hinting at a strong team again tomorrow against the Austrian side, the 31-year-old could feature again.

After a lack of football over recent seasons, the narrative has always rightly been that the four-time Champions League winner will take time to capture previous form. With his glimpses beginning to become more sustained, Bale could be the catalyst for an upturn in Tottenham’s form.

Although unlikely to rise to the levels of importance that the Welshman garnered under Andre Villas-Boas at Spurs, Bale can provide experience and support to Harry Kane and Heung-Min Son.

Mourinho, a winner of the Europa League with Manchester United during the 2016/17 season, could view the competition as his side’s best avenue to Champions League football next season. With debts mounting for their new stadium, Daniel Levy will be desperate to secure Spurs’ place in Europe’s premier competition.

When questioned about his relationship with the Tottenham chairman, Mourinho remained defiant that the pair are on the same page about Spurs’ future.

“My relationship is the same since day one which is a relationship of respect and open communication. Nothing changed in relation to that.

“We communicate every day and we respect each other and I believe that we share the feeling, we aren’t happy with the results but that doesn’t create any contradiction with us because we feel both exactly the same.

“My work is directly with the players, with the staff, the first team, the medical team, the kitman, analysts, I believe that we share the same feelings which is nobody is happy, nobody is depressed but everybody believes that we will do better and everybody believes that better things are waiting for us.”

A win on Thursday is expected but victory is a feeling Spurs fans are beginning to miss.

Positivity is a theme Mourinho quoted throughout his pre-match press conference on Tuesday lunchtime and a comfortable progression against their Austrian opponents could ease fears around North London ahead of a fixture against Burnley at the weekend.

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