Levy savaged over Tottenham manager decision as Carragher makes instant demand of Cristian Stellini
Jamie Carragher believes Daniel Levy may have completely derailed Tottenham’s top-four chances by appointing Cristian Stellini as interim boss, making a big demand on the Spurs chairman in the wake of their 6-1 pummelling at Newcastle.
The north London side decided to end Conte’s reign early after seeing them crash out of two competitions in under a week. And the final straw for the Italian came when he publicly criticised the players and owners following a 3-3 draw at Southampton.
In his place, his No 2 Stellini was put in charge until the season’s end. But the decision appears to have backfired massively after a further downturn in performances and results.
Going into Sunday’s game at Newcastle, Spurs needed a big performance to claw their way back into top-four contention.
However, they were 5-0 down after just 21 minutes, with two goals for Jacob Murphy and Alexander Isak and one for Joelinton.
And that made Newcastle the second fastest team to score five in Premier League history.
With the game already up, Stellini then made a dramatical tactical change. And while they improved a little afterwards, drawing the second half, the game was already up.
Stellini admitted afterwards that he was to blame for the decision, stating boldly: “I was wrong.”
The shift did also not spare Stellini from severe criticism from some pundits.
Indeed, Sky Sports pundit Clinton Morrison suggested the interim coach could get sacked at half-time given how bad the performance was.
While the comments were perhaps a little extreme, the defeat does leave them with just four points from 12 since the decision to axe Conte.
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Carragher turns heat on Levy over Tottenham debacle
As a result, Carragher turned his venom towards Levy, suggesting the blame all lies on his shoulders.
“Newcastle are brilliant, they have been all season,” he posted on Twitter.
“Tottenham are a disgrace! How have they gone to a back four for the first time this season, with Porro a full-back that can’t defend and Perisic who is a winger. Get a proper manager in right now, not Conte’s mate.”
While Spurs continue to hunt for a new boss, the loss means whoever takes over will inherit a club likely to be without Champions League football.
And having witnessed the display, former Spurs and Newcastle winger Chris Waddle claims their supporters should be reimbursed.
“Newcastle have done their job and played with pride but you have to question Tottenham’s pride in the shirt,” he said on BBC Radio 5 Live.
“These Tottenham players should reimburse the travelling fans. This is literally one of the worst performances I’ve ever seen. They consider themselves as a top four club. It is embarrassing.”
Waddle added: “Newcastle work hard, they move the ball and want to get on the front foot. These players are proud to wear the shirt and they want to get the fans behind them. You have to question whether the Tottenham players are as committed.”
Tottenham will look to get their season back on track, and prove to their fans that they do care, in Thursday’s game against Manchester United. They then face Liverpool at Anfield next Sunday in a week where it could get worse before it gets better.
READ MORE: Pundit feels Conte was right as Tottenham players ‘cost him his job’ and have ‘let fans down’
