Jose Mourinho has been steadily revitalising Tottenham Hotspur after the north London club sacked manager Mauricio Pochettino back in November. Spurs were languishing in 14th before the former Chelsea manager’s arrival but have since climbed to sixth under the Portuguese boss’ stewardship. After ensuring progression from a tricky Champions League group, the two-time winner of the competition’s next challenge in Europe is to overcome the Bundesliga’s second-placed side RB Leipzig in the round of 16 on February 19.
Throughout his previous six managerial roles Mourinho has won at least two trophies, something his predecessor failed to achieve during his five-year spell at Tottenham Hotspur. Overcoming Leipzig is the next step in reaffirming Mourinho’s status as the master of knockout football, and he was spotted at their top of the table draw with Bayern Munich. He will have noticed that Julian Nagelsmann’s side lined up with a back five, and the Spurs manager should match his opposition by deploying a similar defensive set-up, as he had done earlier in his tenure.
Leipzig will press the opposition defence similarly to Liverpool, and to have men spare Tottenham need a wide range of options, so there is always a passing lane open. If Spurs opt for a back four, there is a chance that the Premier League side will be forced into playing long balls and could readily concede possession without the aerial presence of Harry Kane, who is suffering from a hamstring injury.
The German opposition will look to force Tottenham Hotspur wide and use the touchline as an extra man to regain possession. Serge Aurier and Ryan Sessegnon both have the ability to dribble around opponents, having recorded an average of 1.7 and 0.7 in the Premier League respectively. They could counteract the opposition’s attempts to press Spurs. Equally using a holding double pivot in midfield would provide additional passing options inside to prevent Tottenham being forced out wide.
Utilising a back five should also prevent the opposition from counter-attacking rapidly if they do turn the ball over, Timo Werner is one of the deadliest strikers in Europe having scored 20 Bundesliga goals in 21 appearances this season. Starving the German international of time and space will be vital to ensuring that Tottenham progress to the quarter-final stage, as Mourinho attempts to go one better than last term when Spurs were losing finalists in Europe’s premier club competition.
