He may have won the November manager of the month award, but Tottenham defender Toby Alderweireld believes that Jose Mourinho is underappreciated.
Mourinho has led Spurs to a positive start to the new season in the Premier League, with Tottenham third in the top flight ahead of their game against fourth-placed Leicester City today.
Spurs can go back up to second place with victory against Brendan Rodgers' side at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, after Everton leapfrogged above them with a 2-1 win against Tottenham's north London rivals Arsenal yesterday.
But while some pundits have been talking about Spurs as contenders for the Premier League title this season, Mourinho and his Tottenham side were dealt a blow as they lost 2-1 against Liverpool thanks to a dramatic late winner from Roberto Firmino on Wednesday night.
However, Alderweireld feels that Mourinho has not been getting much credit for the job he has done at Spurs since succeeding Mauricio Pochettino.
He told beIN SPORTS: "He doesn't get the recognition he deserves because he's such an unbelievable manager.
"You can see the team and how it's changed us; the way we play football, the way we win games. I'm grateful to work under him.
"I only have very, very positive things to say about him. And I think you can see the team loves to play under him."
Mourinho has recently received recognition though, having been named the Premier League manager of the month in November after guiding Spurs to three wins from their four matches over the course of the month.
And Alderweireld believes that was deserved for the Portuguese boss and his coaching staff, with the Belgian outlining what he has done for him and his team-mates to help Tottenham thrive.
"[The award] shows again how good he is," he added.
"It shows how important the team around him and us is. I think people don't get the recognition they deserve that work with us every day.
"Of course, we show it on the pitch but a lot of people are working every day to improve us to make our lives as easy as possible so we can just focus on football.
"I think he knows that and with his tactical knowledge, team talks and everything he's experienced it helps us to perform better.
"He gives me the confidence to play my game. If he doesn't talk to me I know I'm playing well so that says enough."
