Jose Mourinho revealed Tottenham have managed to carefully "hide" their COVID-19 problems as he insisted Premier League chiefs must not let the season descend into chaos.
The Spurs manager is relishing the distraction of an FA Cup tie at Marine on Sunday, describing the competition as "absolutely beautiful" and promising to take a star-studded squad to face the minnows.
But Tottenham would be left in an "impossible situation", according to Mourinho, if next Wednesday's Premier League clash with Aston Villa is called off.
Villa have experienced a major outbreak of coronavirus cases and their first-team training facilities were closed ahead of Friday's cup clash with Liverpool.
Tottenham have already had a London derby with Fulham called off under similar circumstances, and fixtures are piling up.
Mourinho wants a solution to be found and appealed for "leadership" from league top brass, suggesting there should be ways found to allow games to go ahead.
"The only thing I can say is that since pre-season, we knew that eventually it would happen to us, to have difficult situations to manage and to play again with 14 players," Mourinho said.
"I think every club was mentally ready for it."
Mourinho pointed to his former club Chelsea fielding Petr Cech at under-23 level recently, with the veteran goalkeeper coming out of retirement in case he is needed in a crisis.
"Every club was mentally ready for an extreme situation of having a lot of players not available to play," said Mourinho.
"In our case, we didn't have that extreme situation yet but we had problems. We had problems that of course with the legal right that we had, we managed to hide it, to hide it in a way by not telling who was positive and who was not able to play.
"But we are also having our problems. But we always thought we would always play. I cannot say much more than that."
Tottenham, like all clubs, have not been obliged to identify players who have tested positive for COVID-19, which has allowed Mourinho to avoid cases being publicised.
Those affected must go into self-isolation, but it appears Tottenham are in a good way ahead of their trip to Marine.
Mourinho remembered facing lower-league sides during his coaching career, pointing out the day his Chelsea side lost 4-2 to Bradford City in the FA Cup fourth round, back in the 2014-15 season.
"The FA Cup is absolutely beautiful," he said. "That's why, even knowing that I would love to rest all my guys. I cannot do it. It's not about being afraid, it's about giving the guys what they deserve.
"I'm not taking everybody. But out of 20, I take 19 first-team players. so you can imagine how strong we go."
Mourinho promised he would even enter the Marine club raffle, which offers a top prize of managing the eighth-tier team in a pre-season friendly. With no gate receipts, Marine are understandably looking for other ways of monetising the glamour tie.
"I will buy a ticket. Even if I win, I cannot do it," Mourinho said. "I don’t think I will have conditions to do that, but the meaning of it yes, I will be buying it."
The Northern Premier League North West part-timers and Spurs will go down in the record books as having the biggest gap between each other in the pyramid in the history of the FA Cup when they meet at Marine Travel Arena.
Marine sit sixth in their section of the eighth tier of English football, while Tottenham are fourth in the Premier League, reached the final of the EFL Cup this week and remain in the hunt for Europa League glory.
Mourinho will demand victory, of course, and will be quietly testing his players' appetite for the romance of the game.
"This is just a match that can show me how much they love football," he added. "Nothing else."
Fenerbahce confirm Mourinho arrival
Jose Mourinho has been confirmed as the new head coach of Fenerbahce.
The Istanbul giants teased Mourinho's arrival in the wake of Ismail Kartal’s departure, and he has reportedly penned a two-year deal with the club.
Kartal took charge of Fenerbahce for three spells, finishing second behind Galatasaray in the Turkish Super Lig last season with 99 points in his final stint.
Reports said Mourinho had verbally agreed to take over on Friday, before the club confirmed his unveiling will take place on Sunday.
Mourinho has been out of work since leaving Roma in January after a two-and-a-half-year spell at the club in which he led them to their first European trophy, winning the Europa Conference League in 2022, while also taking them to the Europa League final the following year.
The 61-year-old had previously enjoyed stints at Porto, Chelsea over two spells, Inter, Real Madrid, Manchester United and Tottenham.
During that course, he won a combined eight domestic titles and two Champions Leagues, only failing to lift silverware while at Tottenham.
Mourinho is now tasked with ending Fenerbahce’s 10-year wait for a Super Lig title.
Reus move to MLS hinted at by former Dortmund team-mate Burki
Marco Reus waved farewell to Borussia Dortmund after Champions League agony on Saturday, with former team-mate Roman Burki expecting the Germany veteran to join him in MLS.
Burki ended a seven-year stay with Dortmund in 2022, switching the Bundesliga for MLS football as the goalkeeper joined the newly created St. Louis City.
The St. Louis goalkeeper faced Lionel Messi, Sergio Busquets, Luis Suarez and Jordi Alba in Sunday's 3-3 draw with Inter Miami, and hinted that the league could soon welcome another European star.
"I talked to Marco Reus ahead of the Champions League game, I texted, we didn't talk about the move then because he was obviously focused on the game, but Major League Soccer has a very good chance of seeing him next year or the summer," Burki told ESPN.
"I can't tell which team, I am still trying [to convince him] but at some point it's up to [sporting director] Lutz [Pfannenstiel] and [club owner] Carolyn [Kindle] to make a move."
Reus leaves Dortmund after 12 years with the German side, signing off with a heartbreaking 2-0 defeat against Real Madrid in the Champions League final at Wembley Stadium.
Previous reports have suggested Reus could make the switch to the United States, opening up the potential for a reunion with Burki.
St. Louis head coach Bradley Carnell would love to bring the pair back together, though warned that the move is not guaranteed.
"Every time there is a transfer window opening, whether it's our club or not, everyone gets names thrown out at them. We've had plenty of names, whether it's to join now or in six months," Carnell told ESPN.
"We go through our lists, and we see if it makes sense or not. When we are in the position that we are in, sure maybe something comes around.
"The Marco Reus rumours are flattering, it would be something interesting for the league and our team. It's one of Roman's best friends, it would be a nice fairytale story.
"But sometimes reality is far from that. We're working ways and figuring things out, but right now there's nothing to be said about the Marco Reus rumour. But the window opens up pretty soon."
St. Louis owner Kindle echoed Carnell's sentiment, adding: "It's absolutely amazing [being linked to Reus.] In full disclosure, it's difficult to separate fact from fiction.
"Sometimes I call and ask about the rumours, but I thought it would take us three to five years to get to this point of being linked to these figures and we're on year two and these rumours are amazing."
Ancelotti urges Kroos to reverse retirement decision after Champions League glory
Toni Kroos is set to leave Real Madrid as a six-time Champions League winner but Carlo Ancelotti wants the Los Blancos midfielder to reverse his retirement decision.
The Germany midfielder appears to have played the final club game of his career, signing off with European glory after a 2-0 victory over Borussia Dortmund in Saturday's final.
Kroos delivered a perfect corner-kick assist for Dani Carvajal's 74th-minute opener at Wembley Stadium before Vinicius Junior sealed Madrid's 15th crown in UEFA's top club competition.
The 34-year-old Kroos will head to Euro 2024 with Germany this month before calling time on his glittering career, though Ancelotti hopes he will change his mind.
"I'm really grateful to Kroos," Ancelotti said. "He finished at the very top, there is no way to finish higher than this.
"He had the boldness to finish it [his career] and he is a legend at this club.
"All the fans are grateful to him for his attitude, his professionalism. I've told him we are waiting for him to change his mind – we are waiting for you."
It was the sixth winning campaign for Madrid quadruple Kroos, Luka Modric, Dani Carvajal and Nacho in the Champions League.
Only Paco Gento (six) has won the European Cup/Champions League as many times among players in history.
This success will be further boosted by the expected arrival of Kylian Mbappe, who is reportedly set to join Madrid after announcing his intentions to leave Paris Saint-Germain.
Ancelotti says Los Blancos will look to new arrivals, as well as the current crop of Madrid stars, to combat Kroos' retirement.
"We have lost an important player, but we have players who can replace him and we will adapt and play a slightly different way," Ancelotti said.
"We have fantastic players and the resources to remain competitive."
Kroos' Germany face Ukraine and Greece in warm-up fixtures before opening their Euro 2024 campaign against Scotland on June 14.
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