Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy has discussed English football’s ‘obsession’ with managerial longevity following the club’s decision to sack Mauricio Pochettino last month.
The Argentine was sacked less than six months after guiding Spurs to a first-ever Champions League final, the decision bring an end to Pochettino’s five-year spell at the club in which he turned the North London side into regulars in European football’s top competition.
Former Chelsea and Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho was instantly named as Pochettino’s successor, though many have viewed the appointment as a short-term route to success with the 56-year-old having never stayed at any of his previous clubs for longer than three years.
However, Levy has indicated he does not buy into English football’s ‘obsession’ with longevity, highlighting the chopping and changing of managers that is commonplace on the continent.
“The pressure these managers are under is immense,” Levy told the Evening Standard.
“There aren’t many managers that manage a club for five years. [The longevity of Sir] Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger is very, very, very unusual.
“When they first started, the league wasn’t where it is today. It is so competitive and intense.
“I think it is very unlikely you are going to see a repeat of that. The Ferguson and Wenger eras are in the past.
“We are obsessed in this country with the longevity of the so-called ‘manager’, in Europe it is normal every two years to get someone else. It isn’t personal.
“They don’t even sign five-year contracts. They sign for two years and then another coach comes in.”
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