Tottenham managers rated: How does Antonio Conte compare to his recent predecessors?

Michael Graham
24 February 2022

Harry Redknapp, Antonio Conte and Mauricio Pochettino among recent Tottenham managers

It is now 14 years and eight managers since Tottenham Hotspur won a trophy. How does the beleaguered Antonio Conte compare with former Spurs managers.

Tottenham are one of the most torturous clubs around to follow. Of course, fans are fortunate to see the kind of players they have and, compared to a lower league club, being a Tottenham fan must be absolute luxury.

But, at the same time, the sheer inconsistency and penchant for shooting themselves in the foot must be enough to drive anyone crazy.

Brilliantly beating Manchester City last week and then following that up with a dour defeat at Burnley appears to already have Antonio Conte at the end of his, admittedly short, tether.

The Italian is talking like a man on the verge of walking away, so perhaps it is a good time to see how he compares to his predecessors by rating every Tottenham manager since Juande Ramos - the last man to win a trophy at the club.

Harry Redknapp (2008-2012)

Games: 198

Wins: 98

Draws: 50

Losses: 50

Win %: 49.19%

Harry Redknapp and Tottenham is a weird thing. On the one hand, you forget he was even there. But the fact is, Redknapp spent almost four long years in North London.

His record at Tottenham was very good too, winning just about half of his near 200 games in charge.

Redknapp came quite close to delivering a trophy for Tottenham, with the club losing out on a successful defence of their League Cup on penalties to Manchester United.

And yet, Redknapp always felt like a weird fit for Tottenham. Typically there was plenty of wheeling and dealing to bring solid yet ultimately unspectacular players to White Hart Lane with varying success. He tended to go with established names who had performed in the Premier League rather than the emerging talent Spurs seem to have made their obsession in modern times.

Ultimately, though, Redknapp was a good manager for Tottenham. He got them into the Champions League and he got them to a cup final. Can't knock it really.

Rating: 7/10

Andres Villas-Boas (2012-2013)

Games: 80

Wins: 44

Draws: 20

Losses: 16

Win %: 55%

Villas-Boas had a reputation as the new Jose Mourinho after a fine spell at Porto, but he was damaged goods to some extent when he arrived at Tottenham due to an uninspiring - and short - reign at Chelsea.

Tottenham seemed a much better fit for him, and if that wasn't enough, Redknapp had left a quality squad for him to take over.

You look at the stats and wonder why he was ever sacked, although ultimately it was for not getting Tottenham back into the Champions League.

However, there is some context to placed on that. Villas-Boas guided Spurs to a then record points haul of 72 in 2012/13 and they missed out on the top four by one point.

He was sacked in the December the following season with Spurs in seventh position following a 5-0 home defeat to Liverpool.

Did they panic and pull the trigger too soon? We'll never know, but his record is certainly one to be proud of.

Rating: 7/10

Tim Sherwood (2013-2014)

Games: 28

Wins: 14

Draws: 4

Losses: 10

Win %: 50%

Tim Sherwood was the man Spurs turned to when Villas-Boas left, and many think it was a job he essentially gave himself.

Sherwood was assistant manager under Harry Redknapp and took over the role as Technical Director in 2012. He also coached the Spurs under-21 squad, so he was a real fixture at the club.

He landed the manager's job in December 2013 on an 18-month contract, although his quirky touchline antics and media interviews made him a difficult man to take seriously.

Sherwood didn't last long, with him leaving after Spurs finished sixth in May 2014.

Rating: 4/10

Mauricio Pochettino (2014-2019)

Games: 293

Wins: 159

Draws: 62

Losses: 72

Win %: 54%

Many had tried to make Tottenham a club taken seriously around Europe before Mauricio Pochettino, but it was the Argentinian who truly achieved it.

Pochettino looked like a gamble when he arrived. The former Espanyol coach had done well with Southampton the previous year, but that was the extent of his Premier League track record.

What Pochettino did at Spurs was exceptional, though. He got them working hard in a vice-like high press, and created a path for talented academy products who bought fully into his methods to get into the Tottenham first team.

Harry Kane was among them, with the likes of Dele Alli and Eric Dier brought in from other clubs too.

In his first season at the club they nearly won the League Cup again, but were stopped in the final by Chelsea. The following year they were genuine Premier League contenders, but were unable to prevent Leicester City from completing their fairytale.

He made them regulars in the Champions League, and they occasionally flirted with title aspirations too.

In 2019, Pochettino guided Tottenham to their first ever Champions League final but they fell at the final hurdle, losing in the final against Liverpool.

Six months later he was gone, although one still can't help but wonder whether it was the right decision.

The Achilles heel to Pochettino's teams seemed to be running out of steam late in the season, but he was a trophy away from greatness.

Rating: 9/10

Jose Mourinho (2019-2021)

Games: 86

Wins: 44

Draws: 19

Losses: 23

Win %: 51%

The fact that Tottenham were even able to attract Jose Mourinho in the first place is testament to what Pochettino achieved there, but the 'Special One' was starting to see his magic fade when he arrived at Spurs.

In fairness, his record wasn't bad when it is written down. The problem was that he didn't deliver anything close to tangible progress and the style of football tended to be overly pragmatic and safe.

Mourinho took over with the club in the bottom half of the table and guided them to a sixth place finish, and that is good going by anyone's standards.

He also took them to the League Cup final the following year, although he was not allowed to walk his team out at Wembley. Mourinho was sacked just days before it, making Spurs the only club Mourinho has left without winning a trophy.

Rating: 6/10

Nuno Espirito Santo (2021)

Games: 17

Wins: 8

Draws: 2

Losses: 7

Win %: 47%

Nuno Espirito Santo was never going to work at Tottenham, and that wasn't anything to do with him.

He was appointed after a frankly painful summer search for a boss which saw three or four other managers turn the job down first, including Antonio Conte.

That meant he started with everyone - fans, media and, most importantly, players - knowing he was nowhere near the first choice of the club and he likely didn't have any real backing.

To be fair to him, Nuno started off very well, winning all three of his first matches and claiming the manager of the month award for August.

A run of four defeats in six games saw him sacked in early November after just 17 games in charge.

Rating: 3/10

Antonio Conte (2021-present)

Stats correct as of February 24, 2022

Games: 21

Wins: 11

Draws: 3

Losses: 7

Win %: 52%

Conte joining Spurs in November 2021 was bizarre. He had turned down the job just four months earlier and at the time was being strongly linked with Manchester United instead.

Had he joined in the summer, his job would have been a lot easier, so you have to wonder what made it attractive in November after already rejecting a much better opportunity to join the club.

He lost just one of his first 11 games in charge, and even that one was in the Europa Conference League - a competition Tottenham had made clear they considered beneath their ambitions.

The wheels have fallen off recently with six defeats in their last ten matches, leaving Conte openly questioning himself, the club, and apparently the point in even trying to keep trying to improve things.

Conte is a winner, and winners have no patience. That said, if he plays the long game then there is every chance sticking with Spurs could be one of the best decisions he ever makes.

On the other hand, he may think quitting Spurs before they drag him even further into their strange world is the smartest thing he will ever do.

Rating: 6/10