Jose Mourinho moans Tottenham squad has 'too many players' as several Spurs men face axe
Jose Mourinho has complained at having "too many players" in his squad as Tottenham prepare to rubber-stamp the signings of Gareth Bale and Sergio Reguilon from Real Madrid on Friday.
Mourinho left eight players at home, including Dele Alli, for Thursday's 2-1 win over Lokomotiv Plovdiv, which set up a Europa League third qualifying round match against Shkendija in Macedonia next Thursday.
Despite an unprecedented schedule, which will see Spurs face Southampton on Sunday and Leyton Orient in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday before they return to the Balkans, Mourinho is eager to trim the fat from his bloated squad.
Danny Rose, Juan Foyth, Paulo Gazzaniga and Serge Aurier could all leave the club on permanent deals before the end of the month, while Ryan Sessegnon may go on loan. Spurs would consider serious offers for Dele, although he is not currently expected to leave before the October 5 transfer deadline.
Asked if the 24-year-old could return at St. Mary's this weekend, Mourinho said: "You ask me about Dele, you could ask me about the other seven players we left behind. To be honest I don't like the number of players I have in my squad, it is very, very difficult to manage in every aspect of my job.
"Very difficult to manage this situation, too many players. It was Dele plus other seven. Can they be back to the squad? Of course they can.
"I think it is another brilliant decision to only have seven players on the bench, the only country with that, I would like to understand why," Mourinho added, sarcastically.
"It is a big limitation for coaches because we like to have more options on the bench. I also think it could give us more chance to rest more players to manage the situation which is difficult for the majority of the clubs in England.
"When you have the decision of us playing Sunday 12pm then Tuesday, Thursday and do this for two weeks then anything is possible."
Spurs are likely to include a number of young players for the trip to Orient on Tuesday and the winner will play either Chelsea or Barnsley in the Carabao Cup fourth-round, potentially two days before a final Europa League qualifier on October 1 against one of eight possible opponents, which will be decided on Friday afternoon.
It total, Spurs could play nine matches in 22 days if they progress in the cups and Mourinho labelled the schedule "a total joke".
"I wouldn't like to be knocked out of Europa League or even Carabao Cup," he said. "The people that make these decisions that one English – not Tottenham, one English club, could be Wolves, could be Sheffield United or another – they forgot that this situation is not possible.
"This is a joke, a total joke, but here we go. Sunday will be Southampton, Wednesday we will be flying to Macedonia and so on and so on. It is dramatic but I prefer this drama and to be in the competition so let's fight for everything we can."
Spurs have made an enquiry for Danny Ings (below) as Mourinho turns his attentions to striker after capturing Bale and left-back Reguilon.
Saints have flatly rebuffed the approach but Spurs are monitoring Ings' contract situation, with the 28-year-old's deal up in two years.
"Ings is a threat," Mourinho said ahead of Sunday's trip to St. Mary's. "He is a player that scores a lot of goals and every time he plays against us he gives us lots of problems, he is a player we have to respect."
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