Spurs fury over Jose’s comments

TOTTENHAM players were enraged by Jose Mourinho’s comments following Sunday’s draw at Newcastle. Mourinho was asked why his side were so vulnerable late in games, when his teams usually hang on to slender leads. He replied: ‘Same coach, different players.’ His answer has sparked irritation among certain members of the squad who feel he has thrown them under the bus to protect himself from criticism.

The players were also baffled by Mourinho’s claim defender Toby Alderweireld had missed two days of training ahead of the game. The Belgium international wasn’t even on the bench at St James’ Park leading to questions about his no-show.

Mourinho, who Sportsmail can reveal will see his compensation pay-out slashed if he loses his job without securing European qualification, said Alderweireld’s non-selection was because he didn’t train until the day before the match.

When asked about Alderweireld and Serge Aurier’s absence from the match-day squad, Mourinho said: ‘They were fit, but they reported for training only yesterday. They went for their national teams and didn’t make the Covid tests on time to be in the training session on Thursday, not even on Friday. They come only yesterday.’

However, sources claim Alderweireld underwent a Covid test upon his arrival from international duty on Wednesday, while there is photographic evidence of him on the Spurs training pitch on Thursday.

Meanwhile, Spurs can expect to pay less than £30million in compensation to Mourinho if they part with him due to performance clauses linked to European qualification.

It has been widely reported he would be entitled to at least £30m if he loses his job; he still has two years to run on a deal that is worth up to £15m a year.

However, sources claim Mourinho would be entitled to significantly less if Spurs fall out of Euro contention.