In their final preseason friendly against former manager Jose Mourinho before the new season, Tottenham Hotspur lost 1-0 to Roma in Israel.
On Saturday night in Haifa, Israel, Antonio Conte’s Premier League team, Spurs, and Mourinho’s Roma squared off in the I-Tech Cup. In what was the final preseason friendly for Spurs, Roger Ibanez‘s first-half header proved to be the deciding factor between the teams, giving the Italian club the victory.
Mourinho‘s tactics and his team’s performance against his former club, who fired the Portuguese coach in April of last year after 17 months in charge, drew immediate criticism from the fans.
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One supporter tweeted: “I laugh when people say Mourinho is finished. Man still got the juice.”
Meanwhile, FlashScore reported the result by writing: “A Jose Mourinho masterclass. Tottenham have been beaten by their former manager's Roma side.”
Under the tweet, a number of fans expressed their admiration for Mourinho's tactics and Roma's performance, with one simply adding: "Tactical and pragmatic."
“Conte Spurs could not beat the Mourinho parked bus after 90 min, said another. Son disappeared vs low block as expected, Kane was the only one trying on his own. No clear plan to use Kane to break low defences though. It is Conte’s problem to solve.”
Mourinho returned to Italy shortly after being fired by Spurs to take over at Roma ahead of the start of last season, and the team went on to win its first European title, the Europa Conference League, in May.
He took over as manager of Tottenham Hotspur for 86 games after replacing Mauricio Pochettino in north London, although he was unable to complete a full season.
Conte was appointed manager in November last year after his replacement, Nuno Espirito Santo, was fired following a dismal start to the season.
Despite an early elimination from Europe, Conte was able to turn around Spurs’ season, securing a top-four finish and a return to the Champions League.
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