In December 2018, Manchester United fans were adamant that Jose Mourinho's sacking meant he was finished at the "top" in club football.
A drab style of play, a similarly joyless demeanour in news conferences and seemingly incessant desire to belittle his own players marred his time in Manchester.
Disagreements with Luke Shaw, Paul Pogba and Anthony Martial were hardly private, while his relationship with Marcus Rashford appeared uneasy at times as well.
Tottenham paid no mind to the issues – whether that was down to Daniel Levy being convinced Mourinho wasn't finished yet or if he just wanted an entertaining figurehead for his Amazon documentary, who knows. Suffice to say, it ended prematurely on April 19 when Spurs announced his dismissal.
That was two successive high-profile jobs in club management that have, at the end of the day, yielded little – even if Mourinho insists finishing second with Manchester United was one of his greatest achievements.
It left many pondering what might be next. Given the damage to his reputation and the managerial stability of most of the biggest clubs in Europe, international management with Portugal after the Euros seemed the likeliest destination.
Yet here we are: just a few weeks on from being dismissed, he's got himself a new job lined up for next season when he will replace compatriot Paulo Fonseca at Roma. Mourinho's going back to Italy, the setting of arguably his greatest achievement in football: Inter's 2009-10 treble.
But football has changed a lot in the 11 years since then – on the evidence of his time at Tottenham and Manchester United, Mourinho hasn't.
A look at his data in the Premier League since last winning it in 2015 with Chelsea shows real decline.
A failure to evolve
Let's not forget, during Mourinho's first spell as Chelsea boss he was regarded as the best coach in the world at times. Even initially in his second period at Stamford Bridge he did well, taking them to the 2014-15 Premier League trophy.
But things quickly unravelled in 2015, and it's difficult to claim he's been on anything other than a downward spiral ever since.
He was sacked by Chelsea after winning just four games from 16 at the start of the 2015-16 season, and although he did preside over United's best season – points wise – since Ferguson's retirement, he didn't leave much of a legacy at Old Trafford.
Mourinho was then tasked with ending Spurs' 11-year trophy drought. That has since stretched to 13 years, and he left Tottenham having won just 46.6 per cent of his league games in charge.
His record in the English top flight before 2015-16 saw him boast a success rate of 69.4 per cent – since then it is just 48.5 per cent.
But why?
There are numerous theories about Mourinho's demise, but arguably chief among them is the idea he has failed to evolve with modern football, focusing on negating the threats of opponents rather than using the attacking talents available to him to take the initiative.
This fear was reportedly one reason for Spurs players apparently growing frustrated with Mourinho, and the data backs up the idea Mourinho is less forward thinking than earlier in his career, with his teams averaging 1.6 goals per game since 2014-15 finished, as opposed to 1.8 beforehand.
While not a massive difference, that change is exacerbated by the fact Mourinho no longer appears to be the shrewd pragmatic innovator he was once regarded, with his teams in the past few years rather porous.
Again, since 2015-16 started, Mourinho's teams have been conceding at a rate of 1.1 per game, whereas previously they conceded just 0.6 goals every 90 minutes.
Mourinho's teams were once tireless competitors built on a solid foundation – that no longer appears to be the case.
Spurs letting it slip
Perhaps it was expected Mourinho would at least get until the end of the season with Spurs, but with Champions League qualification looking increasingly unlikely, maybe we shouldn't be surprised that Levy acted when he did.
In terms of the reasoning for his sacking, there's probably not much more to it – but if we delve a little further into the numbers, unsettling trends appear.
Granted, the 95 points won by Spurs during Mourinho's time at the club was the fourth highest in the Premier League. However, that was 21 fewer than Manchester United – Liverpool had 117 and Manchester City were out in front on 130.
Mourinho's teams are supposed to be hard to beat, that had essentially been his unique selling point for years, yet Spurs lost 13 times in 2020-21 under him – it's the worst season he's ever had in that regard and he didn't even see it all the way through.
Similarly, the 10 Premier League losses Spurs suffered is a career worst for Mourinho in a single season.
The frequency of defeats led to questions being routinely asked of Spurs' mentality throughout Mourinho's time there, with the 27 points they dropped from winning positions in the Premier League since his initial appointment being behind only Southampton (30) and Brighton and Hove Albion (31) before he was dismissed.
But it makes for even grimmer viewing when looking at this season alone as the 20 points they threw away was the joint-worst in the division at the time of his sacking.
Spurs were particularly concerning when it came to closing games out, losing 11 points to goals conceded after the 80th minute. It's no wonder their collective mental strength had been called into question so often.
While the fact he didn't collect more points per game than Tim Sherwood (1.91) might attract ridicule on social media, the latter's record is actually the best of any Spurs boss to preside over more than 10 Premier League games at the club.
More importantly, Mourinho's 1.64 points per game was a significant drop-off on Pochettino's (1.89), and therein lies a key issue.
Roma have been struggling to meet the expectations of a demanding fanbase for years, a situation not too disimiliar to Spurs.
He couldn't do the business in London – Roma will hope Mourinho's pragmatism can still stake a claim for relevance in Serie A.
Dyche focused on Everton survival fight after Premier League allege FFP breach
Everton manager Sean Dyche is focused on the club's fight to avoid relegation after the Toffees were referred to an independent commission over an alleged breach of the Premier League's financial rules.
Last week, the Premier League alleged Everton had broken the competition's profitability and sustainability rules during the 2021-22 season, which they finished in 16th place.
Everton ended last season four points clear of the relegation zone, but the Merseyside club have found themselves embroiled in another battle to stay in the top flight this term.
With reports suggesting Everton could face a point deduction, a club statement said the Toffees were "prepared to robustly defend" their position.
Asked about the alleged breach on Thursday, Dyche said: "There is no situation at the moment. The club's statement covers everything. I'm happy to go along with that.
"I'm more focused on what's going on on the pitch, obviously. The club have assured me the statement is correct and the rest of it will come down to the powers that be to do what they have to do.
"At the minute, we are really focusing on what is going on now. Of course there are background views on the future but I'm working with the squad now, working to get more points and to make sure we get what we all want, which is to be in the Premier League."
Everton sit two points above the bottom three ahead of Monday's meeting with Tottenham at Goodison Park, having salvaged a 2-2 draw at Chelsea prior to the international break.
Dyche also confirmed striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin is "back out on the grass" and progressing well from injury, but he not yet ready to participate in full sessions.
Which three get your vote? Ferdinand, Toure, Neville, Terry and Fowler among 15 Premier League Hall of Fame nominees
Rio Ferdinand was "delighted" to be named among 15 nominees for the Premier League Hall of Fame.
Introduced in 2021, the Hall of Fame has inducted eight players in each of the past two years, adding managerial greats Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger on Wednesday.
Voting for the latest round of player inductees has begun, with greats nominated from across the last 30 years of the Premier League.
The 2023 class of inductees is dominated by defenders, including former Arsenal captain Tony Adams, ex-Chelsea skipper John Terry and Manchester United stalwarts Ferdinand and Gary Neville.
Former Chelsea and Arsenal duo Petr Cech and Ashley Cole are also nominated, along with ex-United defender Nemanja Vidic.
Midfielders Michael Carrick and Yaya Toure represent both sides of Manchester, with strikers Andy Cole, Les Ferdinand, Robbie Fowler and Michael Owen completing the list.
Ferdinand wrote on Twitter: "Delighted to be nominated again on the #PLHallOfFame. Few decent CBs [centre-backs] listed on the nominees."
The former England captain will be hoping it is third time lucky, having also been among the nominees in 2021 and 2022.
Fans can vote for three players they believe should be inducted, with voting open until 6pm BST on Monday, April 10.
Only three players will take their place among the greats this time around.
The shortlist has been reduced from 25 names previously to 15 and players are only eligible if their retirement was confirmed before 1 January 2023.
In order to be eligible, players must have made at least 250 Premier League appearances or made 200 league appearances for a single club, been selected in any Team of the Decade or 20-year Anniversary teams, won a Golden Boot or Golden Glove, been voted Player of the Season, won three titles or scored 100 goals or registered 100 clean sheets.
2023 nominees: Tony Adams, Sol Campbell, Michael Carrick, Petr Cech, Andy Cole, Ashley Cole, Jermain Defoe, Les Ferdinand, Rio Ferdinand, Robbie Fowler, Gary Neville, Michael Owen, John Terry, Yaya Toure, Nemanja Vidic.
Clippers star Westbrook makes the Grizzlies pay as Lakers look for revenge
The Los Angeles Clippers had Russell Westbrook in history-making form as they overcame the Memphis Grizzlies 141-132 on Wednesday.
Westbrook finished with a season-high 36 points and laid on 10 assists in the victory, which snapped Memphis' seven-game winning streak.
In the process, Westbrook became the first player in NBA history to have a 30-point and 10-assist game with five teams, having achieved the feat with the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Houston Rockets, the Washington Wizards, the Los Angeles Lakers and now the Clippers.
The sides will meet again in Memphis on Friday, with the Clippers having pulled away down the stretch on this occasion.
"Just being composed, as a point guard, I was taught the last five or six minutes of the game were very important," Westbrook said of the fourth quarter.
"Getting stops, getting good shots. We did a good job of executing down the stretch."
Westbrook's team-mate Robert Covington had a season-best 27 points, and he anticipates a tough run-in with plenty of teams in the playoff picture in the Western Conference.
"It's going to be tight," said Covington. "The West from four through 12 or 13 is like a three-game gap, something like that?
"Anything can happen. That's why these last five or six games for us are very important."
Another team pushing for a postseason place are the Clippers' city rivals the Lakers, who beat the Chicago Bulls 121-110.
Anthony Davis starred with 38 points and 10 rebounds, and believes the Lakers – eighth in the West – have what it takes to go on a deep run.
He said: "I think we've got everything we need. It's just about going out and applying it. We can definitely make a run. We've got all the right pieces from top to bottom.
"We owe this [Chicago] team. We owe Houston. We owe Minnesota. All these teams. Utah.
"So all these teams on this trip are teams that we lost to recently, and we want to get some get-back. And seeing as the situation that we're in, we need to win these games.
"So this is a time when we shouldn't shy away from the moment. We should embrace it and these are the moments that you live for as a player."
Davis' display garnered appreciation from coach Darvin Ham and superstar team-mate LeBron James.
"It all starts with A, man," Ham said, referring to Davis. "Him just playing with force, him not settling, putting pressure on the defense to foul, him just loving and living in the paint."
James added: "He always plays like that. Just got to kick him in the a** every now and then. But he always plays like that so I never worry about him."
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
