Leipzig (Germany) (AFP)

How long will José Mourinho be able to capitalize on his reputation? With the defeat of Tottenham, outgoing finalist, Tuesday in Leipzig (1-0, 3-0), the Portuguese coach now remains on four consecutive eliminations in the knockout stages of the Champions League.

Beaten at home on the first leg, led 2-0 to Leipzig after 21 minutes of play (doubled by Marcel Sabitzer 10th and 21st), the Spurs never seemed able to rebel, and the third goal of Emil Forsberg in end of the match (87th) came to nail an already closed coffin.

The finalists of the last edition against Liverpool (2-0 defeat), did not delude against a starving RB, who was fortunate enough to still have his audience, in these closed times imposed by the coronavirus.

Sabitzer, the midfielder's boss, struck twice: An instant flush to the ground from outside the area on a serve from Werner (1-0, 10) and a header that Hugo Lloris went to push back. .. behind his goal line (2-0, 21st).

Led 3-0 over all two games, the Spurs had only to hope for a miracle.

And after all, why not believe it? Last year in the same situation in Amsterdam against Ajax, Lucas Moura had a hat-trick and returned the match!

But at the time, the coach was called Pochettino, and above all he had resources on the bench. This time, with a staff decimated by injuries, Mourinho, the man who had called himself the "Special One", found himself in the skin of a normal human being, helpless in the face of adversity .

In his defense, he had to deal with a private team of several basic men, including his three major players in attack: the captain and scorer Harry Kane, Steven Bergwijn and Son Heung-min.

- Worrisome situation -

Overall, Tottenham never managed to bring danger to the surface of Leipzig, which had control for most of the match. The only real English opportunity came in the 74th minute, when Dele Alli badly cocked his shot alone against goalkeeper Peter Gulacsi, on good service from Lucas.

Mourinho will therefore be brought back to his statistics: At 57, his last victory in the Champions League now dates back 10 years, in 2019 with Inter Milan (after his triumph in 2004 with FC Porto).

Not only has he not crossed the eighth of the competition since 2014, but in his four consecutive eliminations, he has not won a single match! (5 losses, 3 draws). Even if we must credit to his victory in the Europa League with Manchester United in 2017.

In the short term, his situation with Tottenham becomes frankly worrying. Now eliminated in Europe, the Spurs are 8th in the Premier League, and hitting a ticket to a European competition next season will be anything but easy.

For Leipzig on the other hand, which disputed for the first time in its young history an eighth finals of the Champions League, the adventure in unknown territory continues. The team has somewhat stalled in the league since January, but youth and confidence are on its side.

© 2020 AFP