Ryan Mason has made it clear that he fully believes in the group of players at his disposal at Tottenham. Very much in the running for a top-four finish for the vast majority of the season, Spurs' struggles to find consistency in their game has resulted in both Antonio Conte and Cristian Stellini exiting the club after a dire run of results.
Mason is now the third man in the Tottenham hotseat this season and he will be looking to end the campaign on a positive note by getting the team back to winning ways. Having previously played alongside Hugo Lloris, Eric Dier, Son Heung-min and Harry Kane, who are very much the spine of the current Tottenham team, Mason spoke of the team as a whole when asked if he can get the strength and leadership out of the aforementioned quartet that they displayed when helping Spurs to the Champions League final four years ago.
"Honestly, I believe in this group and I believe in these players," confessed Mason. "Last season we finished the season exceptionally well and sometimes in football it is a deeper thing than just having players.
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"It is more about the environment and the mindset or confidence. There are so many factors that can affect results. Ultimately I believe in this group and I believe in the individuals as well. That is the most important thing."
Having known Lloris, Dier, Son and Kane for a number of years now, Mason's friendship with the quartet could play its part in helping them get Tottenham back on the right path again. While they may be friends having played with each other for so long, Mason has made it clear that there is a professional working relationship there and that they know that he is a decision-maker.
"Possibly. Naturally in the last two years since I have been in the first team coaching it is not a friendship, it is a professional working relationship," outlined the acting head coach when asked if his friendship can help tap into the leadership group. "There is respect there - there has always been respect there - but ultimately they knew two years ago and they know now that I am a decision-maker.
"That’s my job. They are going to have to respect that and understand that and I am going to make decisions which I feel are the best for the team to get a result."
A number of Tottenham players have struggled on the pitch this season but that hasn't always resulted in them dropping out of the XI and others being handed a chance in the side. Conte and Stellini had previously alluded to a hierarchy in terms of player selection, with Djed Spence and Arnaut Danjuma two players who weren't given an opportunity in the team under Conte..
When that was put to Mason, he refused to go into Conte and Stellini's plans but did mention that he knows what he wants to do and the players themselves also know what he wants to do.
"First of all I am not going to get drawn into speaking about Antonio and Cristian because I worked with them for a long time and I am grateful for the opportunity I had with them," said the 31-year-old. "I learnt a lot from them and their team as well.
"How they managed things was how they managed things. My job and their job is to get results on the football pitch. How you set a culture and environment differs from every single individual but I know what I want to do and I am clear with that. The players know what I want to do and how I want to approach it so that is the most important thing."
In the role two years ago after taking on head coach duties following Jose Mourinho's exit, Mason now finds himself in exactly the same position with him needing to come in and manage the team in their final six league games. His time in the hotseat certainly gave him a taste of what's to come as he one day looks to become a head coach in his own right.
"Possibly. I’ve always said in football and life that you have to deal with what is in front of you. At that time there was a lot of uncertainty but looking at it now I know I’m ready to help the group and deal with the situation in a good way," said Mason on if taking on the job two years ago had focused him on becoming a head coach.
"I’m young, yes, but not in terms of a coach. Six years of coaching solid is a long time - a normal player retires at 35 and if you fast forward six years then you’re 40, 41 and the perception is probably totally different. In terms of my age I may be young but not in terms of my coaching experience."
On the possibility of getting the Tottenham job full-time if his spell as acting head coach proves to be very successful, he said: "That’s probably off the back of having a good spell and that really isn't on my mind at the moment. The club have said that they feel like my position is the best solution until the end of the season and I’m going to do that now to the best of my ability. Hopefully we can have a positive impact on the group."
While it remains to be seen if Mason will get the job on a permanent basis this summer, it is something he would like to achieve later down the line.
"Yes obviously there are ambitions when you start coaching and you chase things. But I’ve always lived in a way which is to deal with what is happening right now and never take your eye off the ball," revealed Mason.
"I’m ready for this situation and I feel like the players know I’m ready as well. The focus is on these next six games and then in the summer we will see what the best situation is for the football club."
Right now Mason's priority is Tottenham's Premier League encounter against Manchester United on Thursday evening. A huge game for the club as they look to achieve European football for next season, it is also a vital match as they look to bounce back from their 6-1 humbling at Newcastle United and give the fans something to cheer about.
"Newcastle are a very good team and sometimes this happens in football. We don’t want it to happen but they had an amazing 20 minutes and they were the better team in that moment and they fully deserved to win," confessed the former Tottenham midfielder.
"But we can’t get too caught up on what happened at the weekend because our focus has to be on getting a positive reaction in a really big game for us."
On ensuring there is no repeat, he added: "That goes without saying. We don’t want a result like that at any point in any season for this football club."
Making a strong start to the campaign before results started to tail off, Tottenham's mixed run of form has seen them slide out of the Champions League places and two head coaches part with the club in the space of one month. So what has gone wrong for Tottenham in terms of the season as a whole?
"Obviously, a lot’s happened," admitted the Spurs boss. "We’ve had a World Cup during the season which has disrupted every team. We’ve lost members of staff which affects people. We’ve had a change of manager… two. So a lot has gone on.
"But when football clubs are working well there’s not much negativity coming out and maybe it’s good for us to understand that when we’re collective and all together consistently that’s better for the football club."
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