Jose Mourinho teases new assistant with ‘history’ and ‘connection’ to Tottenham Hotspur

Tottenham head coach Jose Mourinho is confident the club will deliver in the forthcoming transfer window while also revealing there is no need to sell players this summer.

Clubs can start doing business from Monday and Mourinho is keen to strengthen his squad in order to ensure they get back into the Premier League‘s top four.

They have been linked with a host of names – including Southampton’s Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and South Korean Kim Min-jae – and the Portuguese, who has been assured by the hierarchy that there is no financial demand to sell his best players this summer, is happy with how things are panning out.

Asked if he was expecting to do early business, he replied: “Monday? A new player Monday? That would be amazing news but I think it’s just the opening of the window.

“I think we’re going in the right direction. Very calm, organised, thinking well, measured, thinking of everything.

“We know what we can do, we know what we cannot do, we know which directions we can go in, which directions we cannot.

“We cannot be reactive in relation to what our opponents may do, that we cannot do. We are very balanced, we’re together. No doubts about what we need, no doubts what it is possible for us to get.

“Step by step we’ll end with a better, more balanced squad than we have now, keeping the great players we have is a very important thing.”

There will be definitely some movement in Mourinho’s backroom staff after he confirmed tactical analyst Ricardo Formosinho is leaving to pursue a head coach role and will be replaced by a young coach with a “connection” to the club.

The appointment will be announced soon, but under-19s coach Ryan Mason, Robbie Keane and Ledley King are possible contenders.

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“My other assistant Ricardo is leaving and he’s leaving because he feels that he would like to have, in this stage of his career, probably one of his last opportunities due to his age, to be a head coach,” Mourinho added.

“I’m not going to say where of course, that’s up to him, but he’s leaving and we all wish him all the best.

“Who is coming to replace him? I prefer that it’s the club that’s going to inform you about that but my decision was to go again in one direction that I had before in other clubs which is to help local people to develop, instead of bringing one more assistant with me.

“So it’ll be someone with a history with the club, connected with the club and let’s try to give him an opportunity because I’m not really a fan of people moving with a lot of assistants and forgetting local talent and people from the house.”

Spurs finish a wretched campaign with a trip to Crystal Palace on Sunday, where they will hope to seal Europa League qualification.

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To be guaranteed entry they have to finish higher than Wolves, who visit Chelsea, otherwise will be left sweating on the result of Arsenal’s FA Cup final with Frank Lampard’s side. Mourinho has an almost fully fit squad to choose from as Dele Alli returns from a hamstring injury, while Eric Dier has served his four-game ban.

Tanguy Ndombele is the only player missing with a knee injury.

“All good, apart from Ndombele everybody is ready, including Dele Alli,” Mourinho said of his team news. “Dele worked with the team all week, he’s ready.”

The game at Selhurst Park is almost certain to be Jan Vertonghen’s final one at the club as his distinguished eight-year stay in north London looks set to come to an end. Mourinho, though, does not want to be the one to confirm it.

“I think (he’s been) eight years in the club and for me eight months, something like that, it’s for Jan to be the man to speak about his future. Not for me,” he said.

PA