Rio Ferdinand Slams Jose Mourinho for Tottenham Player Criticism After UCL Exit

Rio Ferdinand has questioned Jose Mourinho's approach to man management after the Tottenham Hotspur chief blamed his side's UEFA Champions League exit largely on his players and missing personnel.

RB Leipzig hammered Spurs 3-0 at the Red Bull Arena on Tuesday night to seal a 4-0 aggregate triumph in the Champions League round of 16.

Mourinho was despondent in post-match interviews as Tottenham went a sixth straight match without a win. However, former Manchester United defender Ferdinand told BT Sport (h/t The Independent's Karl Matchett) his tactics won't end their downward spiral in form:

"You've got to build them up and give them confidence. 

"Talking about 'going to a gun fight without bullets'—what does that do to the confidence of the likes of Dele [Alli], Lucas Moura?

"That [confidence-building] hasn't been forthcoming from Jose. You see a hint of that in the performance [Tuesday against Leipzig]."

Spurs travelled to Germany without injured attackers Harry Kane and Heung-Min Son, while Steven Bergwijn, Davinson Sanchez and Moussa Sissoko also missed out through injury. 

Marcel Sabitzer scored twice for the hosts inside the first 21 minutes of Tuesday's clash before Emil Forsberg completed the rout late on (U.S. viewers only):

The defeat left Tottenham with two draws and four losses (in 90 minutes) in their last six outings across all competitions, marking the worst run of during Mourinho's career thus far:

"

Jose Mourinho has now failed to win any of his last six games for the first time in his career as a manager  pic.twitter.com/IiOV0LVnCI

— B/R Football (@brfootball) March 11, 2020"

Ferdinand empathised with former United chief Mourinho—who managed the Red Devils between May 2016 and December 2018—but added it's "the duty of a manager" to inspire belief in his players:

"He has got injuries, big injuries to big players, but sometimes there's an element of desire you want to see from all your players, but that was lacking.

"You want to see something that seems mapped out and planned. There seemed no identity with that team. There was no intensity or desire from that team. Those are the questions you ask yourself. That's the duty of a manager. When the times are hard and they're difficult, it's down to the manager to pick them up.

"Players watch press conferences, but, more importantly at the training ground, that's where you pick them up. It doesn't look like he's done that."

The Special One said he "saw the mistakes" in Leipzig's first two goals—for which Spurs goalkeeper Hugo Lloris was partly at fault—adding the German hosts' bench "would all play" for his side, via Sky Sports:

Tottenham recently exited the FA Cup in the fifth round after drawing 1-1 at home to Norwich City, who went on to beat the north Londoners 3-2 on penalties.

The Premier League remains Mourinho's only route to qualifying for next term's Champions League, but Samuel Luckhurst of the Manchester Evening News expressed doubt in the squad:

Manchester City's potential ban from next season's European tournament would mean a fifth-place league finish is enough to secure a Champions League spot. Spurs sit eighth in the standings with nine games remaining.

Mourinho's previous employers, United, are fifth and four points ahead of Spurs ahead of their visit to Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Sunday.