Harry Winks frustrations could be exactly what Jose Mourinho wants – TBR View

Add as preferred source on Google

Harry Winks admits he’s in a difficult position at Tottenham Hotspur but that could be exactly what Jose Mourinho wants right now.

Harry Winks feels as though he’s in a ‘difficult’ position under Jose Mourinho. The 24-year-old wants first-team football but he’s simply not getting it right now.

Since the start of October, Winks has had just 17 minutes in the Premier League. Hardly the game-time for a player hoping to make England’s European Championship squad.

“My situation at Tottenham is difficult at the moment,” he said, per Sky Sports. “It’s important that I keep fighting and working as hard as I can to stay in the squad and to stay in the team.

“I want to be a part of [the England squad] in the Euros and I want to be in the starting XI in the Euros as well.

“But, yes, it’s important that back at Tottenham I get the opportunities there and I stay in the team there as well.”

The Telegraph actually suggests that Winks might look elsewhere in January, seeing it as a last-ditch attempt to secure the necessary first-team football.

An unhappy international could be exactly what Mourinho wants, however.

Options

Tottenham return to action on November 21 and will play 12 matches before the New Year. That’s effectively a game every three days. It also includes a run of five games in 12 days to end the year, featuring Liverpool, Leicester City, Wolves and a League Cup quarter-final.

It will be a test, then. Those are huge games for any club looking to qualify for Champions League football and compete for trophies. But Mourinho can’t possibly play his strongest XI in all of them.

Having a frustrated Winks desperately wanting his chance actually helps, then. Because you can bet he’s not the only player wanting more games. But having these players who feel they must take every chance is perfect for a situation where you’re playing big games every few days.

Mourinho will know, for instance, that Winks gives everything he’s got when he plays this winter. He’ll feel like he has no choice. And perhaps at the end, the club and player do part ways in the transfer window.

But that will only come after a tough period where Mourinho will want squad players fighting for every minute.