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DOWNBEAT JOSE MOURINHO IS PICTURED LEAVING SPURS’ TRAINING BASE FOR THE LAST TIME

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Mourinho, 58, was axed by the club on Monday morning and left the complex for the final time

Jose Mourinho has been spotted leaving Tottenham’s training ground hours after the axe was wielded on his tumultuous reign.

The 58-year-old was dismissed on Monday morning with the club on course to miss out on the Champions League and having exited the Europa League in humiliating fashion.

The 2-2 draw at Everton proved to be the final straw for Daniel Levy and now, soon after being told of his sacking, Mourinho has been snapped being driven away from the Hotspur Way complex for the final time.

The former Manchester United and Real Madrid coach, who has been sacked four times in England, was seen in the passenger seat of a sleek vehicle. 

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Sacked Spurs boss Mourinho carried his belongings back to his home from his car  

It looked as though dismay was etched across the face of the crestfallen Special One as he left.

He was seen leaving the Spurs training complex just after 3.30pm on Monday morning and arrived back in his west London home later on Monday afternoon.

Mourinho was seen taking his belongings from his Spurs office back into his home with goalkeeper coach Nuno Santos helping him. The items included several large images of the Portuguese coach’s career highlights. 

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As he arrived back at his home, Mourinho refused to open up on his Spurs exit, but insisted he is ready to take another job in football straight away.

He told Sky Sports: ‘No need for breaks and (recharging) batteries. I’m always in football.’ 

When asked by Sky Sports whether it was unfair he had been sacked just before a cup final, he stopped for a moment and grinned but made no further comment. 

The bombshell announcement was made by Tottenham less than a week before they take on Manchester City in the Carabao Cup final. 

Mourinho also departs as the fallout continues following confirmation that the north London club will join a number of top-flight peers in the European Super League.

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Mourinho will walk away with up to £20million as part of a hefty compensation package.

The amount will not surpass that figure, sources have said, due to the performance-related clauses written into his contract.  

Mourinho will be placed on gardening leave, which means Tottenham will continue to pay him as normal until he takes up another job elsewhere.  

Tottenham are seventh in the Premier League which, combined with failures in Europe, effectively means Mourinho is not entitled to his full compensation.

A statement confirming the sacking read: ‘The Club can today announce that Jose Mourinho and his coaching staff Joao Sacramento, Nuno Santos, Carlos Lalin and Giovanni Cerra have been relieved of their duties.’

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‘Jose and his coaching staff have been with us through some of our most challenging times as a Club,’ chairman Levy said. 

‘Jose is a true professional who showed enormous resilience during the pandemic. On a personal level I have enjoyed working with him and regret that things have not worked out as we both had envisaged. 

‘He will always be welcome here and we should like to thank him and his coaching staff for their contribution.’

Ryan Mason, the former Tottenham and Hull City midfielder, will take the reins, assisted by Chris Powell, until the end of the season.

Mason, 29, took charge of first-team training on Monday. 

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The search for Mourinho’s permanent successor is now underway. 

RB Leipzig boss Julian Nagelsmann has been identified as the favourite to take over.

Tottenham have been long-term admirers of Nagelsmann, who is widely deemed as one of the most talented young coaches in world football.

It is believed that Naglesmann, who is only 33, was under consideration for the Spurs hotseat after Pochettino’s departure in 2019, although Mourinho was later handed the job. 

Leipzig will not allow Nagelsmann to leave this summer, however, without receiving a compensation package worth £17m. 

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Former Manchester United and Real Madrid coach Mourinho’s last game in charge at Tottenham came in the 2-2 draw against Everton on Friday. 

Despite Harry Kane’s leveller at Goodison Park, the dropped points dealt a major blow to their hopes of securing a spot in the Champions League. 

Sources have claimed that the underwhelming display proved to be the final straw. 

Talisman and vice-captain Harry Kane paid tribute to Mourinho after the news broke.

‘Thank you for everything boss,’ Kane wrote on social media. ‘A pleasure to have worked together. I wish you all the best for your next chapter.’ 

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The cup final next weekend represents a chance for Spurs to lift silverware for the first time since their triumph in the same competition in 2008. 

Mourinho will no longer lead them out at Wembley, though, with little tangible progress made over the last season and a half. 

He could only guide Tottenham to a sixth-placed finish during his first campaign in charge, albeit after taking over halfway through with the team languishing in 14th. 

This term has been a step back, with the north London outfit knocked out of Europe in humiliating fashion by Dinamo Zagreb and reeling from other poor results. 

For the first time in his managerial career, Mourinho was made to suffer 10 league defeats in a single season.

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The on-field misery also saw Tottenham drop 20 points from winning positions this season. No other top-flight club has lost more when leading. 

His options to take up another top job are likely to be dwindling after his latest sacking, having now been shown the exit door four times in England.

With Chelsea (twice), Manchester United and now Tottenham all choosing to axe him, Mourinho is sure to be running out of choices.

He has enjoyed great success in Italy, Spain and Portugal, so could be forced to take a job in one of those countries and move away from England. 

-Daily Mail

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Kunle Solaja is the author of landmark books on sports and journalism as well as being a multiple award-winning journalist and editor of long standing. He is easily Nigeria’s foremost soccer diarist and Africa's most capped FIFA World Cup journalist, having attended all FIFA World Cup finals from Italia ’90 to Qatar 2022. He was honoured at the Qatar 2022 World Cup by FIFA and AIPS.

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Maguire handed suspended prison sentence for 2020 brawl 

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Premier League - Manchester United v Aston Villa - Old Trafford, Manchester, Britain - May 25, 2025 Manchester United's Harry Maguire reacts REUTERS/Chris Radburn/File Photo 

England and Manchester United defender Harry Maguire has been handed a 15-month suspended prison sentence ​by a Greek court over a 2020 ‌incident in Mykonos, Sky Sports reported on Wednesday.

In 2020, Maguire was found guilty of repeated bodily harm, attempted ​bribery and violence against public employees after ​his arrest in a brawl in which ⁠two police officers were assaulted.

Maguire, who was detained ​for two days following the incident and denied ​any wrongdoing, was handed a suspended prison sentence of 21 months and 10 days but was granted a full ​retrial after appealing against Greek court convictions on ​multiple charges.

In accordance with the Greek judicial process, the filing ‌nullified ⁠Maguire’s conviction before a full retrial in a more senior court. His retrial was postponed many times.

Maguire faced allegations of non-serious assault, resisting arrest ​and attempted ​bribery. The ⁠32-year-old was convicted on all three counts but will face no prison time. ​His legal team will appeal against ​the ⁠guilty verdict, Sky Sports reported.

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Maguire’s brother Joe and friend Christopher Sharman were also found guilty of offences ⁠related ​to the incident and received ​suspended prison sentences in 2020. They also denied any wrongdoing.

-Reuters

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Timber header earns Arsenal crucial win over Chelsea

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 Arsenal's David Raya celebrates after Jurrien Timber scores their second goal Action Images via Reuters/Andrew Boyers

Arsenal maintained control of the Premier League title race as they chiselled out a nervy 2-1 win over London rivals Chelsea to open up a five-point lead at the top of the table on Sunday.

Jurrien Timber’s 66th-minute header from a Declan Rice corner ensured Arsenal took three precious points, but it was a nervy afternoon in north London.

Mikel Arteta’s side moved to 64 points from 29 games, with Manchester City, who have played a game fewer, on 59.

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Arsenal’s Jurrien Timber celebrates scoring their second goal with Gabriel Magalhaes REUTERS/Jaimi Joy 

Defender William Saliba had given Arsenal the lead in the 21st minute from a trademark corner routine.

But it had looked as though an own goal by Piero Hincapie just before halftime would prove costly for the hosts until Timber came to their rescue.

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Chelsea, whose six-match unbeaten league sequence under new manager Liam Rosenior was halted, ended the match with 10 men after Pedro Neto was sent off for a second yellow card.

-Reuters

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Manchester United climb to third in Premier League table with come-from-behind win over Palace

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 Premier League - Manchester United v Crystal Palace - Old Trafford, Manchester, Britain - March 1, 2026 Manchester United's Matheus Cunha in action with Crystal Palace's Daniel Munoz REUTERS/Phil Noble

Manchester United produced a stirring second-half comeback to defeat Crystal Palace 2–1 at Old Trafford on Sunday, with captain Bruno Fernandes inspiring the turnaround that lifted the hosts into third place in the Premier League standings.

Trailing inside four minutes after a dominant start by Palace, United responded through a Fernandes penalty before his pinpoint free-kick was headed home by Benjamin Sesko to seal victory against the 10-man visitors.

The win extended interim manager Michael Carrick’s unbeaten run to seven matches since taking charge in mid-January. United now have 51 points from 28 games and are unbeaten since the January 5 dismissal of Ruben Amorim, climbing into third for the first time since May 2023. Palace remain 14th on 35 points.

“It feels like a big result, we were behind and had to show some character,” Fernandes told Sky Sports. “There are a lot of games to go still, and it is important that we don’t feel that we are in the position that we need to be. We need to make as many points as we can.”

Palace, under Oliver Glasner, were electric in the opening half hour, capitalising on sluggish United play. Defender Maxence Lacroix powered home a header from a corner after muscling past Leny Yoro, scoring the earliest goal United have conceded this season.

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The visitors nearly doubled their advantage when Daniel Munoz latched onto an Ismaila Sarr through ball, but goalkeeper Senne Lammens produced a crucial save.

United gradually found their rhythm before the break. Sesko forced Dean Henderson into action with a header from a Fernandes cross, and the Palace keeper also tipped a Fernandes free kick over the bar.

The turning point arrived in the 57th minute when Fernandes converted from the penalty spot after Matheus Cunha was dragged down by Lacroix. Following a lengthy VAR review, Lacroix was shown a red card, reducing Palace to 10 men.

Eight minutes later, Fernandes’ delivery again proved decisive as Sesko rose highest to nod home the winning goal.

United pushed for a third, with Casemiro’s volley drawing a diving save from Henderson and substitute Amad Diallo testing the keeper from distance in stoppage time. Joshua Zirkzee saw efforts blocked, while Kobbie Mainoo’s fierce strike drifted narrowly wide.

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Carrick praised his team’s resilience. “The biggest thing for us to take from the game is really the first time that we have been in that situation going in at halftime,” he said. “Being in that position and how we react and showing that personality and belief… to then come back as we did in the second half is the biggest thing for me today.”

Palace pressed late but could not find an equaliser. Glasner admitted his side had let the game slip. “It feels like there was more possible today. A great first 30 minutes, but the red card changed it completely. The second goal just happened too quickly.”

For United, the victory reinforces growing belief under Carrick that a top-four finish—and a return to Europe’s elite competition—is firmly within reach.

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