Amidst the countless European and domestic trophies Jose Mourinho has won in his time as a manager, the one asterisk hanging above his head is his development of youngsters – or the lack of it to be precise.
The Portuguese man has been at the helm of some of the biggest and financially rich sides in Europe, including the likes of Chelsea, Inter, Real Madrid and Manchester United. All of them flush with cash, and happy to spend big sums of money.
And in this cut-throat world of instant success, and lack of patience for building for the future, it is perhaps unsurprising that Mourinho doesn’t seem to be looked on favourably when it comes to bringing through young talent.
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You only have to look at the career path of Kevin De Bruyne to see that – a man who was on Chelsea’s books whilst the Special One was in charge, before eventually ending up at Manchester City and becoming one of the Premier League’s elite players.
It’s a fact that wasn’t lost on Frank Lampard, when he appeared to take a thinly-veiled dig at Mourinho after the Blues’ win over Spurs back in December.
“If we’re not patient and we don’t stick with the players then you might be in a situation where we have been before, where top world-class players have been at Chelsea when they were 20 or 21, but the managers maybe didn’t stick with them so much then.”
But with reports in recent days suggesting that Spurs have entered the race to sign Birmingham prodigy Jude Bellingham, there is a massive opportunity for him to rectify that.
Bellingham, just 16, has established himself as a key part of the Championship side, making an impressive 34 appearances across all competitions for the first-team. It is no surprise therefore that the likes of Manchester United and Liverpool are amongst the top sides being linked with a potential swoop for the midfielder.
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But if Spurs can manage to fend off interest from their league rivals, and lure the starlet to north London, then it gives Mourinho the perfect chance to create a fresh legacy for himself.
It will give him a prodigy coveted by some of the biggest sides, and a potential player to build an entire team around for the next decade at the least. Bellingham’s arrival would give Mourinho an opportunity to silence the naysayers, and prove to everyone that he doesn’t need his team to spend bucket loads of money to achieve trophies and relative success.
It may change people’s perception of his approach to management, and do wonders for the way people remember him when he eventually calls it quits.
Meanwhile, Tottenham are scouting this Ligue 1 powerhouse.