This was published before Tottenham's defeat at West Ham on February 21.
After winning the Champions League with Porto in 2004, Jose Mourinho’s meteoric rise from interpreter to world class manager was complete.
Having answered the call to turn Chelsea into a modern-day powerhouse, backed by Roman Abramovich's millions, he could hardly have arrived on British shores in a more explosive fashion; his opening press conference at Stamford Bridge remains iconic.
However, that fresh-faced, innovative coach, a man bursting with enough confidence and charisma to christen himself the 'Special One' is long gone.
Whether nostalgia-induced optimism, Mourinho's ability to be reinvigorated by a new job, or something entirely different, the arrival of the Portuguese manager at a new club always seems to elicit an initial uptick in results, before things slowly, then rapidly, unravel.
This is no new observation; it's fair to say his last few years in management have been anything but 'special'.
But why does it keep happening? And more to the point, after Chelsea (twice), Real Madrid and Manchester United all experienced the negative aspect of 'The Mourinho effect', are Tottenham about to become the latest casualty?
Can Tottenham make the top four?
When faced with an in-form Manchester City last weekend, Tottenham were outclassed.
They looked inferior across all areas of the pitch at the Etihad - expected goals (xG): MCI 2.46 – 0.43 TOT - and mustered just 36% possession. Their best chance of the game was given an xG value of just 0.12, highlighting just how toothless Spurs really were.
Unfortunately, lacklustre and pedestrian performances in games of such magnitude have defined Jose Mourinho’s career in recent years.
Mourinho and Tottenham need Dele Alli
No team can anticipate having a player of Harry Kane's calibre sidelined without any detrimental effects, but it’s ultimately the manager’s responsibility to overcome this problem, within reason.
Mourinho’s adversary, Pep Guardiola, has excelled in this area, tinkering with his tactics and personnel without the near-permanent absence of Sergio Aguero - who recorded 0.95 xG/95 last term - to win 17 straight matches in all competitions.
Guardiola has a better squad, but it’s difficult to sympathise with Mourinho given his management of Dele Alli.
After Alli’s emergence at Spurs, it wouldn’t have been a ludicrous statement to suggest the 24-year-old would eventually be providing contribution similar to that of Ilkay Gundogan (0.47 xG/95) this season.
In fact, the England international did exactly that only a few seasons ago, with an outstanding 2016/17.